Shook Me All Night Long
by djk1982
Summary: Naota is now a college student enjoying a stable, peaceful life. But, things are about to get shaken up when Haruko returns. And whats this, she didn't come alone! R&R NEW CHAPTER UP!
1. Coffee and Surprise Visits

Greetings, loyal readers! Before I begin, I must first state that all disclaimers apply to this fic. Furi Kuri and its characters do not belong to me, nor will they ever. This makes me very sad. This fic, however, is mine mine mine, all mine! And I hope you all enjoy it thoroughly. Read on true believers!  
  
FURI KURI; THE SEQUEL  
  
AC/DC YOU SHOOK ME ALL NIGHT LONG lyrics  
  
She was a fast machine  
  
She kept her motor clean  
  
She was the best damn woman I had ever seen  
  
She had the sightless eyes  
  
Telling me no lies  
  
Knockin' me out with those American thighs  
  
Taking more than her share  
  
Had me fighting for air  
  
She told me to come but I was already there  
  
'Cause the walls start shaking  
  
The earth was quaking  
  
My mind was aching  
  
And we were makin it and you -  
  
Shook me all night long  
  
AC/DC  
  
Naota Nandaba, 21 years old, walked through the doors into the coffee shop. The pleasant aroma of cinnamon and java rose to his nostrils. He smiled to himself, took a long, deep breath. He always stopped in here after classes. The atmosphere was soothing. Today, he was pleasantly surprised to see Mamimi sitting at the counter. She noticed him at the same exact same moment. "Naota!" Mamimi said as she waved to him. He strolled over and sat down next to her at the counter. He leaned his bass up against the wall, and ordered himself a coffee. He eyed her camera curiously.  
"Take any good pictures today?"  
"Not really" she said with a rather sour look, "I was on assignment in Mabase."  
"Really? How is the old place?"  
"Wrecked. The Medical Mechanica factory exploded this morning." Naota almost choked on his coffee. He coughed for a moment, punching his chest as he tried to regain his posture. He looked up at her, red faced and disbelieving.  
"What?"  
"You mean you didn't hear anything about it?" She titled her head to the side questioningly, and when he didn't answer her for several seconds she continued. "The whole thing is gone. It must have been a really big explosion. They had the whole place cordoned off. I had to take most of the shots from a hill nearby; they wouldn't even let me in. And I'm the press, damn it!" She took a long drag of her cigarette. Naota eyed her, disapprovingly.  
"I thought you said you were going to quit...again."  
"Yeah, well, today was really stressful. They help me relax."  
"Do they know what happened?"  
"Not really" she took a sip of coffee and continued without even looking at him, "I tried to get some information, but the details are sketchy. Whatever it was, the Medical Mechanica is scared stiff. I did talk to one person though, this nice woman named Kitsurubami. She was helpful. She told me that there were tread marks all over the place."  
"Tread marks? You mean like car?"  
"No, she said, get this, that they looked more like tread marks from a motor scooter."  
"M-motor scooter..." at this, Naota's face went pale. "Yeah. It was weird. Her boss, this weird guy with really big eyebrows came over and started yelling at us before she could tell me anymore." Naota leaned against the counter, his head resting on his hand. All these events together gave him the most horrific images. He had been trying to bury the Vespa riding, havoc wreaking form of Haruko somewhere deep in his mind, away from the pleasant calmness of his current life. It had been a long time since he had watched her flying off into the sky on her scooter. For a while, he had wished with all his heart that she would come back. But eventually he had started to see life without her for what it was: peaceful. He did not have to worry about crashing satellites, raging aliens, or things leaping out of his head now. The mere thought of all that happening again sent chills down his spine.  
"Naota? Hey, Naota! You awake!" Mamimi shook his shoulder, trying to get his attention again. It woke him from his thoughts, and he turned his attention back to her.  
"Oh, sorry. I was um...just thinking."  
"I was just asking, are you going to be playing tonight?" She looked at his guitar, and then back up at him. He hesitated before answering.  
"Um...not tonight, Mamimi. I'm feeling a little ill all of a sudden."  
"Hm, that's too bad. I was looking forward to hearing you play. I swear, Naota, there aren't two people alive who can do what you do with that thing." She reached out for the bass, but he quickly grabbed it and pulled it away from her reach.  
"Don't!" he said urgently. She pulled back, surprised, and eyed him curiously. "Heh, sorry..." he said after placing it back down. "I...don't like people touching it. Its kind of important to me."  
"No problem. I feel the same exact way about my camera. Just don't freak out like that again."  
"Sorry."  
They sat in silence, sipping their coffee. Naota tried his best to forget everything she had just told him.  
  
"What a complete and total mess" Commander Amarao muttered as he kicked up some dirt. He and Kitsurubami were still investigating the wreckage of the Mabase factory. The twisted metal and smoking debris was rather haunting in the light of the setting sun, and they both felt quite uncomfortable there.  
"Hard to say exactly what happened" Kitsurubami said as she examined some of the wreckage. "It looks like a hundred pound bomb went off, but there are no signs of shrapnel or explosives anywhere. It's almost like the place just spontaneously combusted." She knelt down at took a hard look at some of the tread marks that were scattered all over the grounds. "And these tire marks! It's almost like..."  
"Don't even say it!" Amarao shouted at her. "I don't even want to hear her name!"  
"...like a group of rampaging terrorists on motor-scooters buzzed through here" she added with a nervous giggle. Amarao gave her a friendly nod and turned back to whatever he was doing. "Hm...those eyebrows..." Kitsurubami thought to herself as she stared at his back.  
"Hey" Amarao said suddenly, "These marks over here weren't made by any scooter." Kitsurubami ran over and joined her boss, bending down to examine some tire marks that had been dug deep I into the ground. He was right; they marks were deeper than a scooter's would be, and they had a more distinctive tread pattern.  
"Then what could have made them?" she said as she took a sample of the soil to be analyzed.  
"These look more like they were made by...a motorcycle" Amarao said. He cocked one of his large eyebrows, and scratched his chin.  
  
Naota sighed as he trudged his way home. The sun had dipped over the horizon, but the whole sky was still filled with orange and pink light. He dragged his feet lightly along the curb as he walked, lost in thought. He wondered if it was at all possible that everything Mamimi had told him was somehow connected to him. The Medical Mechanica factory, and the scooter tread marks all sounded characteristic of Haruko. But why would she have destroyed the factory? And if she was back, why hadn't he noticed?  
He shook his head, thrust all those thoughts aside. There was no way, simply no way it could be happening. It was just all a matter of coincidence, that was all. And it had nothing at all to do with him.  
As he fumbled for the keys to enter his apartment building, the sound of a motor scooter coming down the street caught him. He froze, clenched his teeth. The hairs on the back of his neck all stood straight, his knees trembled beneath his body. His mind attempted to order his neck to move, for his head to turn, but his body refused to respond. As the sound grew closer, he closed his eyes tight and tried as hard as he could not think of what was inevitably dominating his thoughts.  
"Its not Haruko, its not Haruko, its not Haruko..." he muttered to himself as the sound came to a halt directly behind him. He heard the scooter's engine stop, heard the sound of footsteps coming up behind him. He hunched over, tightened up, and waited for it...  
"Hello Naota. Having trouble getting in?" He opened his eyes at the sound of the familiar voice of his landlady alongside him. He turned his head, saw her wearing a helmet and a pair of goggles. He arched his neck, looked behind him, and saw her green scooter parked at the curb.  
"No...no ma'am. Just thinking about something." She gave him a skeptical look, and went inside. Once she had vanished behind the doors, Naota let out a great breath and slumped down onto the street, his back against the concrete wall of the building for a moment. He scolded himself mentally for getting so worked up over nothing. After a few moments recuperating, he gathered up his guitar and backpack and entered his building.  
Within moments, he was standing in front of his apartment door. He turned the key in the lock and opened the door. He stepped in and squinted against the growing darkness. He reached for the light switch. The moment the lights were on, he was attacked.  
A pair of monstrously strong arms coiled around him from behind and hoisted him up off his feet. They gave him a ferocious squeeze that almost knocked the air out of him. Naota squirmed until the arms released him. He was dropped roughly onto the floor, bumping his head in the process. He scrambled back against the wall and looked up to see who his assailant was. The sight that filled his eyes sent a cold stab into his gut, and he felt his heart stop beating for a moment.  
"Takuuuuun! Surpriiiiiiiiiise!" an all too familiar, high pitched voice squealed as those two arms hauled him back up and gave him another back-breaking glomp.  
"H-Haruko!" he stuttered between his gasping for air. She gave him one final tight squeeze and let him drop to the floor again.  
"Its me! Back, and as beautiful as ever, if I must say so myself! And look at you, all grown up. Maybe I won't be able to kick your butt anyone. Oh, never mind, its so good to see yooooouuuuu!" she hopped onto his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Did you miss me?" she said, batting her eyelashes at him innocently.  
Naota stammered for something to say, and then feinted. 


	2. Naota's New Roommate

A cold flood of water in the face shocked Naota out of his feinting spell. He found himself being dunked into his own sink, up to his neck in the water. He tried to yell, but only made bubbles. He thrashed and writhed until Haruko let him go and he fell to the floor gasping for breath.  
"W-why did you do that?" he said as he looked up at Haruko. She threw him an odd look, as if her motivations were obvious.  
"Well, you feinted. I had to wake you up somehow. Whatsamatta, did I scare you?"  
"Just a little..."  
"Aaaaaw!" she shouted before he could finish, "Little Takun was surprised to see me! Come here you!" she hauled him to his feet and gave him another Haruko sized glomp, this time mashing his face into a not unimpressive set of cleavage. Naota found himself struggling for air a second time.  
"Haruko..." he said after he managed to tear himself from her grasp, "What the hell are you doing here?"  
"What? You're not happy to see me?" her eyes became glassy and her lip trembled slightly.  
"All right! Cut that out!" Naota shouted. Haruko's face instantly returned to its normal expression. At least, as normal as Haruko got.  
"Damn, maybe you've gotten too smart for me to mess with you anymore" she said, sounding truly regretful. She sauntered from the kitchen into the small living room and flopped down onto the couch. "Now, to answer your question...well after I left earth to chase Atomsk, at first everything was fine. But after a while, I kind of started to miss you and..." she stopped when she saw Naota was giving her a rather dirty look. She let out a sigh and decided to try the real truth. "All right, all right. I screwed up while I was chasing Atomsk. Instead of taking all that power for myself, I ended up losing every little bit of it. My bosses were pretty pissed at me for it, and they fired me, so I had nowhere else to go."  
"But why come to me?" Naota shouted, exasperated by her explanation.  
"Becaaaauuuuse, you said you loved me, so I knew you couldn't say no." She hopped up off the couch, walked over to him, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She gazed into his eyes and whispered seductively, "So, how bout we stop the explaining and get down to some fun, big boy?"  
"Haruko...get off me," Naota said reluctantly as he pushed her arms off him. He walked over to the window and leaned against the wall, gazing out over the city. "That was a long time ago, Haruko. I've changed..."  
"No you haven't" she said as she came up behind him, "You're still that cute little guy who slept in the bed below me, let me teach him to swing, who fell in love with me..." she wrapped her arms around him from behind and nuzzled her face against his shoulder. Naota stiffened for a moment, and then felt his temper suddenly rise. He spun around, pushed her away from him, and glowered at her.  
"And you haven't changed either! You're still the same manipulative, lying, back stabbing witch you were then!" He regretted the words the moment they left his mouth. Haruko took a step back, as if his words had struck her physically. She started at him in disbelief, and then turned, running for the door. "Haruko!" Naota shouted, "Wait..." he sighed and looked at his feet, waiting to hear the sound of the door slam. Instead, when he looked up, he found himself looking straight into Haruko's green eyes, her face looking as hopeful as a child on Christmas morning.  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah???"  
  
Eri sighed and rubbed her temples. She had a splitting headache and was so tired she could sleep for ages. She gathered up her papers into her briefcase and locked her office door on the way out.  
As she stood in the elevator, riding down to the lobby, she could not help but chuckle at her current situation. Whoever believed the life of a corporate executive was glamorous or exciting should be shot. Or at least sued.  
The fact of the matter was, while she made more money than her father, the mayor of a small town, ever had, her life was hectic, stressful, and above all, lonely. A crammed schedule left little time for any type of romantic overtures, and she felt secluded and alone almost all the time.  
She took a deep, relaxing breath as she stepped out into the night air. The air was cool and brisk, and she eased up her shoulders, which had been drawn up almost to hear ears through the course of the day. Right now, her mind was on a quiet dinner and a soothing shower.  
As she started to step into the street, the sound of an approaching vehicle flew into her senses, and she leapt out of the way seconds before the motorcycle went ripping past her.  
"Hey jerk, watch where you're going!" she shouted, shaking a fist in the air. The reckless driver jabbed his middle finger up at her before disappearing around a bed.  
Eri groaned, and set about picking up the papers that had flown in all directions when she dropped her briefcase...  
  
"You mean it! I can stay here?" Haruko shouted happily as she hopped from foot to foot with excitement. Naota could not tell if she was faking it this time, and rubbed the back of his neck as he nodded his head. Haruko let out a squeal and threw her arms around him, picked him up off the floor, and spin around the room with him.  
"Hey, hey!" he shouted as he struggled out of her arms. When she put him down, he raised his hand up to emphasize what he said next. "But, there are some rules first. One; you will not make anything come leaping out of my head like before. Two; you will not interrupt my studying or upset my neighbors. And three; no humiliating me in front of my friends."  
"Aw, take all the fun out of my life" Haruko muttered. "All right, all right" she hurried to say when she saw the look Naota threw her.  
"And this is just until you find someplace of your own. This is not permanent."  
"Okay Takun, okay. Hey, can we get something to eat? I'm starved!" She rubbed her stomach and grinned innocently at him. Naota groaned and reluctantly agreed.  
They stepped out of his building in the night. Her Vespa was parked on the corner. She hopped around him like a hyperactive child as he slowly walked down the street. When they were almost to her scooter, the sound of an approaching motorcycle shook Naota out of his thoughts. A maniacal laughing rose above the sound of the roaring engine. Naota grunted and rubbed his forehead, it was throbbing suddenly. He looked at Haruko and found her looking positively petrified. "Oh no..." she said in a hoarse whisper.  
Before Naota could ask her what was wrong, the motorcycle tore around the corner and came rocketing toward them. In a move that stunned Naota, the driver of the bike released the handlebars, leapt up onto the seat, and then pounced into the air, landing clean on his feet near them. He was one of the most bizarre looking people Naota had ever seen; from head to foot he was clothed in black; a pair of black biker boots led up to some very new looking black jeans, which were lopped by a belt with metal studs. These were followed by a black turtleneck, covered more by a black leather coat. An earring shaped like a planet dangled from one of his ears. His yellow eyes blazed at them, and his sneer revealed some unusually sharp looking canine teeth. He reached into his jacket, his arm disappearing up to the elbow, and when he withdrew it, it was holding double-headed guitar.  
  
"Haruko!" he screamed in a voice that Naota had only heard before in his nightmares. "Our fight this morning was just round one! Round two just began!" 


	3. Rumble

Haruko shoved Naota out of the way when their attacker struck the ground with his guitar, sending a massive shockwave ripping through the pavement. It tore its way toward them, and only Haruko's push kept Naota from being blown off his feet.  
The assailant charged at Haruko as she lay prone on the ground. He swung his guitar overhead and attempted to bring it down on her like an executioners axe. She rolled to the side, dodging the blow that tore a massive chunk of asphalt out of the pavement. He raised his weapon up again, preparing for another blow when Naota charged into him, knocking him off balance for a moment.  
"Leave her alone!" he shouted as he desperately tried to launch a flurry of punches into the mysterious attacker. But this monster was larger than Naota, stronger and heavier, and his blows were more like rabbit punches on a brick wall. The spiky haired monster clapped his hand over Naota's face and lifted him clean off the ground. "Who are you?" Naota managed to say between his fingers.  
"I'm her replacement, freak!" the stranger hissed as he tossed Natao aside like a bag of trash.  
"Hey asshole, over here!" Haruko shouted as she charged in on her Vespa. She had her bass now, and leveled it like a medieval jouster. But before her attack could make contact, the stranger grabbed the handlebars of her Vespa, hoisted it, Haruko and all, above his head, and tossed it to the ground. He kicked her bass away from where it landed, and stood over her as she struggled to push her Vespa off her body. He raised his guitar high over his head, ready to deliver the killing blow.  
Naota scrambled as fast as he could to grab Haruko's bass from where it had landed. He picked it up, leapt as hard as his legs could manage, and was just in time to block the blow that surely would have sliced Haruko clean in half. He pulled up with all his strength and knocked their attacker's guitar clean from his hands.  
He had little time to enjoy his small victory though, for now the monsters attention was leveled onto him. Naota found himself thrown across the street when a punch that could have shattered buildings slammed into him.  
"I would have let you get off clean, you little creep" the black creature growled as he hoisted Naota up by his neck. He tightened his grip till small droplets of blood began to appear between his fingers. His grip loosened, however, when something caught his attention. He leaned closer to Naota to get a closer look. It almost looked like the flesh across Naota's forehead was pulsing, rippling. "What's this?" he muttered as he moved in a little closer.  
A massive pillar of flesh lanced off of Naota's head and slammed into the attacker full force. It catapulted him away from Naota, crashed him into the ground, and then pushed him along, leaving a small trench of torn and cracked asphalt as it continued to grow and grow. He shouts and protests were completely muffled out by the mass that was overwhelming him. It continued further and further until, finally, it paused for a moment, shuddered, and then receded back into Naota's head. Naota moaned, and then collapsed.  
  
"Sir! A massive energy flux just occurred outside Mabase!" shouted one of the IIB personell.  
"Where? Give me a reading." Amarao said as he turned from his desk. The huge monitor that dominated the room showed a satellite image that zoomed in further and further until it showed the outline of the city. A large blip blinked outside one of the buildings. A readout revealed energy levels that were off the charts.  
"It looks almost like an N-O Channel" Kitsurubami said as she came up alongside Amarao. "We haven't registered anything like this since..." she gave a side glance to her boss, who was so absorbed in watching the monitor that he did not seem to notice when she said "Since Haruko left Earth."  
"Hm..." Amarao muttered as his oversizd eyebrows twitched, "Perhaps its time we checked up on Naota..."  
  
Naota moaned as he opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the wrecked street outside his home. Then he saw a pair of boot-covered feet walk into his line of vision. An angry sounding grunt sounded above him, and one of the boots lashed forward, kicking him in the face. It sent him sprawling onto his back. He gazed up at the man that had attacked Haruko and he. He did not look as confident as he had moments ago. There was a trickle of blood trailing down his chin from his lips. He wiped it away and snorted.  
"Humans. You're not even worth the flesh that you're printed on." His motorcycle pulled up behind him, like a horse riding to its master. He sat down upon it and pointed down at Naota. "I'll be back to drink my fill later. And then you and Haruko both will scream." He revved up the engine on his bike and roared away into the night.  
Naota sat in a stunned silence. He did not react when Haruko strode up alongside him. She stood, waiting for him to say something, anything. After a moment of silence, she reached down, took his arm, and pulled him up to his feet.  
"Hey, Takun, you awake?" she said as she waved a hand in front of his face. Naota turned his head to her and looked her straight in the eyes.  
"Haruko...I think we need to talk." 


	4. I was asleep

"His name is Jakun" Haruko began. Naota was laying on his couch, an ice pack pressed firmly against his forehead. Haruko paced back and forth across the small living room, her heads clasped behind her back. They both tried their best to ignore the sirens outside.  
"Well, I told you I was fired after I failed to catch Atomsk. Jakun was the one who got my job." Naota sat up, letting the ice pack slip off his head. He watched Haruko as she paced, his head going back and forth.  
"So why is he trying to kill you?"  
"Well, remember when I said my bosses were pissed because I failed?"  
"Yeah..."  
  
"Well...they were really, really, REALLY pissed."  
"Oh..."  
"He's been chasing me for a while now. I thought I'd lost him when I came back to Earth to look for you. But he caught up to me when I stopped in Mabase to search."  
"It was you!" Naota said, standing up now. The ice pack fell from his hand, spilling ice cubes all over the floor. "You were the one who destroyed the Medical Mechanica factory!"  
"Well, I had to defend myself!" Haruko said, sounding almost offended. There was a knock at the door. The both of them fell silent. They stood, frozen to the spot, waiting till the knocking eventually stopped. A few moments later the sound of footsteps going back down the hallway signaled them, and they both let out heavy sighs of relief.  
"Did you do this too?" Naota said, his voice a bit quieter now. He pointed to his forehead, where the N-O Zone had opened.  
"No. I don't know how that happened. Maybe he did it."  
"No way. He looked just as confused as you did."  
"It made him go away, didn't it? Don't question it, just be thankful."  
There was more knocking at the door now. They were both silent again. This time however, a familiar voice gave Naota some comfort.  
"Naota? Naota, are you there?" Mamiri said from behind the door. Naota smiled with relief.  
"Hey, isn't that...?" Haruko said as she started for the door.  
"No!" Naota shouted. He tackled Haruko from behind and squirmed with her on the floor for a moment. He found himself laying on top of Haruko, his hands keeping her arms pinned over her head, her legs wrapped around his waist.  
"Why Takun, if I'd known you wanted it that bad..." Haruko whispered. Naota groaned and scrambled up to his feet.  
"Naota? Naota, what was that? Are you okay in there?" Mamimi said as she continued to knock on the door.  
Naota shoved the protesting Haruko into his bedroom and quickly shut the door. He ruffled his own hair a bit to make it look more unkempt, and then went to answer Mamimi. He opened the door to find her looking quite concerned.  
"Naota? Are you okay?"  
"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, I was just sleeping."  
"Are you sure? I thought I heard you yell, and there was this thud..."  
  
"I fell out of the bed. You surprised me."  
"Sorry." She grabbed his wrist and tried to tug him out into the hallway. "Did you see what happened outside? Looks like someone drove a monster truck through here!"  
"Oh, yeah. Looks terrible." Naota was grinding his teeth, trying to think of a way to hurry the end of this conversation.  
"Did you hear anything? I mean, its right outside your home, how could you not have?"  
"...I was asleep!" Naota said, louder than he had wished. There was a sudden thud from behind him and the sound and the muffled sound of someone cursing.  
"Naota...is there someone in your apartment?" Mamimi said, giving him a very skeptical look.  
"...I was asleep!" he said again, even louder this time.  
"What does that have to do with anything?" Mamimi said.  
"I didn't see anything. I was asleep" Naota said, trying to regain himself. Mamimi obviously did not believe him. But she also did not seem to want to press him hard for details.  
"Well, if you do remember seeing anything, you will let me know, won't you?" she flashed him one of her best cute looks, and he felt torn in half between friendship and necessity.  
"Sure Mamimi, sure" he said, his eyes flicking around nervously.  
"Cool. I was hoping you'd be so willing. I could always count on you, Naota" she winked in a way that Naota had a hard time interpreting. She waved gaily at him as she went down the hallway and left the building.  
  
Naota let out a heavy breath and let his shoulders lower from the position they had assumed next to his ears. He went back into his apartment, closing the door behind him. He went to his bedroom, and found Haruko asleep on his bed. She was hugging her bass to her body, as if it were a teddy bear. Naota shook his head and smiled gently. Haruko did look peaceful in her sleep. Almost angelic.  
He tried for half an hour to move her over a bit without waking her, unsuccessfully. He eventually gave up trying gently and attempted to simply shove or roll her to the side, enough so he could lay down and sleep himself a bit. But, she seemed to suddenly weigh a thousand pounds, and was unmovable. She snored softly, and occasionally blew a small bubble. Naota finally gave up trying to move her, grabbed one of his spare pillows, and made for the living room.  
Just as he was about to settle in, there was another knock at the door.  
"Mamimi, I told you already..." he said as he opened the door. The words froze in his throat when he saw it was not Mamimi.  
"Hi." The mouth that was located somewhere below those huge eyebrows said. "I'm not sure if you remember me. I'm..."  
"I was asleep!" Naota shouted and slammed the door. 


	5. Kidnapped

"Heh, I'm sorry about slamming the door in your face" Naota said as he leaned back against the wall.  
"Hey, its no problem. You must have been surprised to see me." Amarao light up a cigarette as he leaned back against the wall. He made a face as he smoked. He held the pack up to Naota.  
"Sorry, I don't smoke" Naota said in reply.  
"You sure? They say only mature, responsible adults should smoke. Say, I'm a little puckish, you wouldn't happen to have anything sweet in there?"  
"Just diet soda," Naota said. He looked out at the street, which was now mostly blocked off. The police had closed the entire block and were rerouting traffic to go past his building. They believed some sort of care pile-up was responsible for all the damage. "So, why are you here again?"  
"Well, you've heard about what happened in Mabase, I assume?" When Naota nodded, he went on. "We have no idea what happened to the factory. Its like some comet just fell out of space and destroyed it."  
"Tell me about it..." Naota muttered.  
"What?"  
"Huh?"  
"You said 'tell me about it.' What do you mean?"  
"Oh, nothing, nothing" Naota forced a large smile onto his face, even as one of those large eyebrows cocked curiously at him. Naota felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Those eyebrows...  
"Anyhow...earlier tonight we got some strange readings back at HQ. It looked almost like an N-O channel, just like the ones way back when...well, you remember. Considering you were just as involved in that situation as I was, I thought you might know something about it." He pointed both of his eyebrows straight at Naota, who flinched a little.  
"Afraid I don't know anything..." Naota finally said. He felt nervous telling so many lies in one night. He tried his hardest to look like he was telling the truth, but Amarao had a perpetually suspicious look about him. It was the eyebrows.  
"Well...pity." Amarao reached into his pocket and handed Naota a small card with a phone number on it. "Well, that's my extension line. If you do see, hear...or feel anything, you will let me know, won't you?"  
"Yeah, sure" Naota muttered as he stuffed the card into his pocket.  
"Well, thanks for taking the time" Amarao said. He turned to leave, but then turned and gave Naota his best accusing look. "You know...its funny. I investigated the wreckage of the factory myself...and there were these tire marks all over the place. I had them analyzed. You know, they are the exact same type of tires that were on her Vespa. Isn't that strange?"  
"Eyebrows..." Naota thought aloud.  
"What about eyebrows?"  
"Nothing!" Naota said, louder than he had wanted. He was cracking under pressure, and Amarao knew it. He decided to cut this as short as possible. He faked a yawn. "Look, I've got classes in the morning, I really need my sleep."  
"21 years old and still going to school," Amarao said, shaking his head. He saluted Naota, and headed off down the street.  
Naota remained, standing on the curb for a moment, and then let his shoulders lower from his ears for the second time that night. He went back inside.  
  
"Well, does he know anything useful?" Kitsurubami asked when Amarao got into the van with her.  
"He said he doesn't know a thing, but I don't believe him. He slammed the door right in my face when he saw me. I think he's hiding something. Lets keep an eye on him for the new few days." Kitsurubami started the engine up and started driving. There was a tense silence between the two of them for a few blocks. After a while, Amarao spoke up again. "So, Kitsurubami, how have you been?" His hand brushed against her thigh.  
Kitsurubami shrieked and nearly veered off the road. When she regained control of the vehicle she threw Amarao the angriest expression he had ever seen. He cringed back for a moment, but Kitsurubami's wrath was soon distracted by the sound of a motorcycle engine approaching.  
"Boy, this guy is coming up real fast..." she muttered as she saw the approaching driver in the side-view mirror. She reached her arm out the window and waved, trying to tell him to pass her. Instead, he just kept coming. He drove up alongside the van, and glared at the two of them with his crazed looking eyes.  
"I don't like the look of this..." Amarao said. The moment the words left his mouth, the harassing driver suddenly produced a guitar and swung it high over his head. Kitsurubami and Amarao both realized what was happening at the same time and screamed.  
He struck the van hard along its side. The force of the blow blew it clean off the road, sending it tumbling through the air. It landed on its back, the tires still spinning. It screeched to a halt against the curb.  
Kitsurubami groaned as she opened her eyes. She had blacked out for a few moments. She realized her situation, and then muttered a prayer of thanks to the heavens for whoever had invented seatbelts. She unbuckled hers, from her seat, and then crawled out through the smashed window.  
"Administrator Amarao, are you..." she said between the pain as she tried to stand.  
"Kitsu! Heeeeeeelp meeeeeee!" came the shrieked reply. Her eyes flashed open just in time to see their attacker's motorcycle go streaking off into the distance. 


	6. For Her Pleasure

"Do you know who I am?" The question was asked from several feet away. Amarao could not tell exactly what had happened. He had feinted shortly after the wild-eyed motorcycle driver had grabbed him.  
"I don't know who you are. I don't want to know. I work for the Intergalactic Immigration Agency. We have connections to any government, and with the Medical Mechanica. They'll pay a huge reward for me. Maybe..."  
  
"Shut up" the voice was right on top of him this time. The tape that was covering his eyes was violently torn away. Amarao kept his eyes shut tight in fear. "Open your eyes and look at me."  
"I don't wanna" Amarao said in a most whiny voice.  
"You just said you work for the Intergalactic Immigration Agency. This concerns your job. Now, open your eyes, or I'll have to staple your eyelids to those oversized eyebrows of yours."  
He looked most frightful to Amarao. He was dressed all in black. His purple hair was spiked, looking almost as if someone had run an electric current though him. His yellow eyes were a twisted version of Haruko's own green ones. They were every bit as crazy looking, but they did not have the same mischievousness, instead they had a streak of sadistic wickedness.  
"What...what do you want?" Amarao asked up at him.  
"The same thing you want, I suspect. Haruko."  
"Haruko! She is back on Earth! I knew it! I knew..."  
"Shut up" Jakun said, interrupting once again. "Yes, she's back on Earth. She is shacking up with that little shit-faced brat that you were talking to earlier. She was probably inside listening while you talked, did you know that? No, of course you didn't. You're head doesn't work like his does." He leaned down closer, and sniffed, as if he were trying to get an idea of Amarao's cologne. "You have the stink of Haruko on you too, and I've been tracking that scent for months. She worked her magic on you once, didn't she?' Before Amarao could answer, Jakun turned away and walked a few feet, pacing. "I know what she did last time was here. All the trouble she caused. Embarrassed you, didn't it? Want to make that up? Want to pay back what you owe her? Want to look good in front of your superiors, save the world?"  
"Boy, do I ever" Amarao said as he straightened up. Jakun strode back over. He planted his hands on the sides of the chair he had tied Amarao too, and brought his face closer to Amarao's.  
"Then you tell me everything you know. And then you do exactly what I say."  
  
Eri sighed as she read the nutrition label on the box of cereal she was considering. She decided against it, and put it back on the shelf. She needed something with less sugar. As she reached for another box, she caught sight of a person down at the end of the aisle. She narrowed her eyes until she was sure, and then approached him.  
"Naota?" He looked up from the grocery list he was examining, and his eyes widened as he recognized the woman in front of him.  
"E-Eri? Is that you?" He could hardly believe his eyes! He had not seen Eri in years, in the past couple of days he had almost forgotten she existed. What's more, she was no longer the bright-eyed girl he had known. She had grown up into an absolutely gorgeous woman. Even now, he could not help but feel a few butterflies when he talked to her. Lord, those eyes.  
"Yeah, its me, in the flesh." She flashed him a warm smile that added a few more butterflies. "You're looking good. What are you up to now?"  
"I'm a student. Studying art." How about you?"  
"Well, I sort of own my own company..."  
"Really? Wow! I always knew you'd do big things."  
"Well, you know how it works. You start in the mailroom and work your way up..." she said, giving a slightly embarrassed laugh. They looked at each other for a moment, admiring how the other had grown. For a moment Naota considered saying something about how pretty she looked, but then a familiar voice tore those thoughts down.  
"Oooh, look Takun, 'ribbed for her pleasure.' We should try these!" Haruko said as she came up behind Naota. She wrapped one arm around his neck, the other held out a package of full sized condoms in front of his face. Naota suddenly felt as if his stomach had been pumped with liquid nitrogen. Eri made a curios face and cocked an eyebrow.  
"Naota?"  
"Um...Eri, I can explain..." Naota stuttered as Haruko nuzzled her face against his.  
"No need..." she said, giving a soft chuckle, shaking her head. "Going to introduce me?"  
"Eri, this is..."  
"Takun's girlfriend" Haruko said, giving Eri a rather nasty glare. "Besides, you know who I am."  
Eri looked confused for a moment, but then her eyes widened with recognition.  
"Miss Haruko? Is that you?"  
"The one and only!" Haruko struck a pose.  
"Wow! You look fantastic! Like you haven't aged a day." Her eyes flicked back and forth between Naota and Haruko. "So...you and Haruko, huh Naota?"  
"No, no, its not what it looks like!" Naota held his hands up in front of him, as if trying to ward off an attack.  
"What do you mean, Takun? You said you loved me, remember?" Naota turned, his eyes full of anger at Haruko.  
"Its okay, Naota. Its no concern of mine." Eri glanced around, as if she suddenly felt uncomfortable. "Um...I have to finish my grocery shopping. I'll try giving you a call sometime, okay? Maybe the three of us can get together for dinner sometime."  
"We'll have to clear our schedule. We might be busy at night..." Haruko drew a small circle on Naota's chest with her finger. Naota clenched his teeth and struggled for something to say.  
"Well, I'll see you later, Naota."  
"Eri, wait!" Naota said once she had gone on into the next aisle. He said it loudly, causing several other shoppers to stop and stare at him. He for a moment, frozen. Then he turned to look at Haruko, who was now picking up a box of high-sugar breakfast cereal. She saw his expression, and titled her head.  
"What? Something I said?"  
  
"Thank you for all the information, commander. You've been most helpful." Jakun had his back turned to Amarao again. He was scribbling on a notepad.  
"You're sure you can handle her? I mean, she took out whole squads of my people last time..."  
"I am quite capable of handling Haruko. You just follow the instructions I gave you, and everything will work out fine."  
"Will you let me go now...please?" Amarao felt his sense of terror reach levels he had not imagined possible when Jakun moved back in front of him.  
"Yes, you will be set free now, commander. But there is one more thing you can do to help me." He pounced on Amarao, sitting on his lap. He leaned down to the hapless commander as if he were going to kiss him, and bit Amarao's eyebrows off. 


	7. Mamimi Visits

"Hm...do I dare?" Kitsurubami thought to herself as she eyed Amarao's empty chair. She felt slightly disloyal about the thought that was slowly crawling from the back of her mind to the front. It was true, there was no evidence that proved Amarao was dead. But he had been missing for well over 24 hours. And if Amarao was gone...  
"Commander Kitsurubami...has a nice ring to it." She smirked as she thought this, and finally decided that just a few minutes in the boss' chair would not hurt. She edged her way into it, as if the chair was somehow going to come to life and bite her. But, once she leaned back into it, a satisfied smile spread across her face. She allowed herself to slouch, her back sliding down against the back of the chair. She propped her feet up onto Amarao's desk. She laced her hands behind her head, and gave a long, deep sigh.  
"Ah, its good to be the chief" she thought aloud. She closed her eyes, and pretended that she had a junior version of herself attending to her every whim. Her daydream was interrupted soon by a faint buzzing sound, like the flight of an insect. At first it started softly, but slowly rose, and rose, and rose, till she could swear it was the sound of something growing closer...  
Before she could rise to see what it was, the wall next to her exploded, sending chunks of plaster and wood flying in all directs. The force of the explosion threw her back down into the chair, and when she opened her eyes she found that there was a smoking motorcycle sitting in the center of the office, and seated on it was the same lunatic who had overturned her van the day before.  
"I've got no more use for this guy" he grunted, and with that he tossed the squirming form of Amarao onto Kitsurubami, knocking the both of them over in the chair, sending them sprawling on the floor, tangled in each other's limbs. Jakun revved his bike, spun around, tearing up the carpet as he went, and left through the hole he had used to make his entrance.  
Kitsurubami freed herself from the mess of squirming limbs. Once she had straightened herself up, she took in the scene before her. Her boss looked absolutely horrible, clothed only in his boxer shorts, which (she restrained a snort of amusement) had small hearts printed on them. A pair of large, blood soaked bandages were taped above his eyes, covering the large eyebrows that had caused her so much consternation before. Thin lines of spittle trailed out from under the duct tape that covered his mouth. It mingled with the tears that poured down his face from his eyes.  
  
"My God, administrator Amarao, are you all right? What did he do to you?" she tore the duct tape from his mouth, and he gave a shout of pain as some skin from his lips went with it. He then curled up into a ball, sucking his thumb as we wept. Kitsurubami tore her cellular phone from its place on her hip and shouted into it. "Get me a medical team in Amarao's office, on the double!" She then knelt down over her wounded boss, trying to get a measure of his injuries.  
"My eyebrows..." Amarao moaned "He took my eyebrows..."  
  
"You could have been a little nicer to Eri, you know" Naota said as he made his way over to the refrigerator. He opened it and grabbed the orange juice. As he put the open tab to his mouth, he heard Haruko's reply.  
"Why should I have been? She was making eyes at you. FROM THE CARTON? THAT'S DISGUSTING!" Naota felt Haruko's spoon slap hard into the back of his head, and he yelped from the impact of the hit. She still had a vicious throwing arm.  
"She was not" he said as he rubbed the back of his head. He sat down opposite her, and she gazed at him over her bowl of cereal.  
"She was so! The nerve of her, trying to make moves on my man."  
"I am not 'your man'!" Naota shouted. He wasn't sure why that upset him.  
"Yes you are. You said you loved me, remember?"  
"Haruko..." he groaned and leaned back into his seat, rubbing his temples. "That was a long time ago. I'm not a little kid anymore. Everything has changed..."  
"It doesn't have to." He opened his eyes to find Haruko standing before him. She was dressed in an ill fitting nightie that stopped just above her thighs, only just covering her. She sat down on his lap, straddling him, and rested her arms on his shoulders. She leaned her face in close to his. "It can still be the way you wanted it to be, Takun..." she whispered seductively as she pushed her body gently against his. Naota gulped and felt his masculine instincts taking over. Her nibbled lightly on his earlobe as he struggled for something to say. She slowly moved one hand down and placed it over his groin. Her eyes widened for a moment. "Wow..." she said as she worked up a sly grin, "you really have grown!"  
Naota's face flushed a deep crimson. He stood up, dumping Haruko onto the floor. She looked up at him, confused, as if she had done nothing.  
"Just cut it out Haruko...leave me alone..." he said as he turned to walk away. He made his way to the door, opened it, and knelt down to retrieve his morning newspaper. Instead, he found himself face to face with a pair of firm ankles, that led up the rather shapely legs to Mamimi.  
"Hey, no peeking up my skirt, Naota!" she said, giggling a little as he stood up.  
"Heh, sorry..." he said, rubbing the back of his neck.  
"Here's your paper" she said, handing the rolled up newspaper to him. He tucked it under his arm and addressed her with a gentle smile.  
"So, what brings you here a this time of the day?"  
"Oh, I was just in the neighborhood. I thought you might like some company for...Naota, please tell me that's not your bra..."  
Naota felt his body go stiff as a two by four. He slowly craned his neck to look over his shoulder, and saw what Mamiri did; Haruko's size D cup bra lying on the floor next to the bedroom door.m  
"Um...Mamiri...I can explain..." he started to say when Haruko's voice broke in from the kitchen.  
"Takuuun, come back inside, I'm going to get all lonely in here!" Naota's face drew taught, while Mamiri's formed into a look of playful amusement.  
"Oh, I see" she said with a giggle, "Sorry to interrupt. I'll stop in some other time." Naota stood, totally dumbstruck, trying his best to find something to say. He remained standing in the open door for a moment after Mamiri left. He was still struggling for words when Haruko's arms wrapped around him from behind.  
"So, who were you talking to?" When Naota gave her that stunned look, she shrank back a little. "What?"  
  
"Aw man, they're closed" Gaku scowled as they passed the Nandaba family bakery. "I was really in the mood for a cookie."  
"Funny. They're normally open this time of day..." Masashi said with a shrug. They contemplated it for a moment before moving in.  
Inside the bakery, the yellow eyes of Jakun narrowed as he watched the two wander off. After a moment of silence, he nodded in approval of no one else coming by. He then knelt down behind the bakery counter. Nandaba Kamon was laying on the floor. His ankles had been bound together with duct tape, and his hands had been tied behind his back. There was another piece of duct tape covering his mouth, muffling his cries for help. There was a dark stain on the front of his pants from where his bladder had let go the moment this walking nightmare had touched him.  
"Now then..." Jakun hissed as he bent down over Kamon. "Where do I find these special people? Where do I find Ninamori Eri, and Samejimi Mamimi?" 


	8. Musing and Music

Mamimi chuckled to herself as she thought of catching Naota with a girl. It amused her as she walked home. Her own apartment was in a less heavily trafficked neighborhood, and the quiet was something she valued particularly. She could not help but be a little surprised. In all the years she had now known him, she had never expected Naota to suddenly start bringing women home. But, that was his life, no concern of hers.  
That was a lie, and she knew it. She shook her head and sighed, more than little frustrated with herself. She had always looked upon Naota in a little brother fashion, and more than once she had intervened to try to help steer his life in a better direction. Things had not always been great between the two of them, and at one point they had argued so fiercely that they did not speak for almost two years, during which time she traveled, mainly going to America to visit Tasuku. And, as much as she tried to deny it to herself, when she had returned and found Naota grown into a handsome, bright eyed college boy, it had made her heart flutter a little. And his guitar playing helped to ease her mind many times after hard days on the job.  
She shook her head, clearing away all the thoughts. She had thought of Naota enough. Now, it was time to think of her bathtub, and the bottle of brand new bubblebath she had just bought that was sitting in it, and how wonderful those little bubbles would feel once they foamed up around her skin...  
So distracted was Mamimi by the thoughts of soap and water that she payed absolutely no heed to the motorcycle parked on the curb outside her building...  
  
Naota made his way slowly home. Classes were over for the day, and he needed to get home and make sure Haruko was all right. It felt strange to be thinking of her in such a protective manner, but ever since that attack by Jakun, he had been worried about the possibility of him trying again while he wasn't there to help her. He had forbid her to go anywhere in public without him there as well, and she actually accepted that without an argument. Rather, she had commented on how cute it was that he was worried about her.  
That was the other strange thing. Haruko had always had a strange sort of flirtatiousness with him, but lately she seemed to be turning it on extra hard. She constantly reminded him that he had once said he loved her, and she seemed almost possessive of him whenever any other girl was near. She had practically bit Eri's head off at the supermarket, and she had questioned him for an hour about his relationship with Mamimi. Even stranger was that she actually seemed lonely. For the first couple of days, each time he left for his classes she would beg him not to go, and then she would cling to him a like puppy when he came home. She had calmed a bit in the couple of days, she still showered him with her bizarre versions of flirting. And he was not entirely sure, but he had a strange suspicion that she had been going through his underwear drawer. He always folded his boxers neatly, but lately they were looking ruffled and wrinkled, as if they had been jammed back into the drawer rather hurriedly.  
  
He opened the door to his small apartment, and was surprised to not find Haruko right behind it with her characteristically large grin plastered across her face. He raised an eyebrow and advanced cautiously, wary of her waiting around any corners with another of her super-glomps. He made his way into the living room, and was amused to find Haruko snoring on the couch, surrounded by candy bar wrappers, a TV test pattern blinking from across the room at her. He smiled, and leaned against the wall, watching her sleep for a moment. He remembered hearing that snoring from above his head. Sometimes it had actually helped him sleep to know that she was there. He didn't know quite why, but part of him felt actually very glad that she had come back.  
He left her sleeping. He felt like getting some refreshment, and doing something else...  
  
"Now ladies and gentleman, I would like for you all to give a warm welcome to our friend, he's a genius at his bass, Nandaba Naota!"  
Naota walked into the stage amidst a soft applause. His bass rested on his thighs once he was seated. He smiled at the small crowd. He could not make out their faces from the lights shining at him, but it made it better for him that way. If he saw their faces, his stage right would start to take in. He took a deep breath and began.  
He strummed the chords hard, his infliction perfect. His music was different from what he occasionally heard Haruko playing. Haruko tended to play hard rock, or sometimes heavy metal. But Naota favored lighter, more soulful sounds. He closed his eyes, his fingers finding the chords perfectly on their own. Each note pounded out into the microphone in front of him, echoing through the small coffee shop hauntingly. As people listened, they closed their eyes, letting their minds conjure colors and images that flowed in rhythm to Naota's music. He occasionally stopped plucking the strings to stomp his foot in time to the beat, only to resume playing without missing a beat. When he finished, the applause was louder this time, more appreciative. Naota strode off the stage without a word, and took a seat as the next performer stepped up.  
He ordered some green tea, and leaned back into his chair. That had definitely been what he had needed. The waitress returned and placed a cup of coffee with cream down in front of him.  
"Excuse me, but I ordered..."  
"A lady got this for you" she said with a playful smile.  
"A lady?" This caught Naota's attention. "Who?"  
"She's right over there." Naota followed her pointing finger to where Eri sat. She smiled at him warmly, and raiser her own cup to him in a silent toast. Naota returned the smile and went over to sit with her.  
"That was quite a performance" she said as he sat. "I didn't know you could play like that."  
"I kind of learned over time" he said, taking a sip of the coffee she had gotten him.  
"You write that song yourself?"  
"Well...yeah" Eri's eyebrows raised in pleasant surprise.  
"And a writer too. Is there anything you can't do, Naota?"  
"Since when did you start calling me by my name?"  
"Since you grew up." Naota looked at her eyes, and found a sincere look of admiration. And while he was looking, he could not help but admire the features of her fair face. For a moment, he found himself hypnotized by those eyes. The spell was broken when she spoke.  
"Ever thought of writing lyrics for that song?"  
"Huh? Oh, not really...I think it kind of speaks for itself."  
"That it does. Maybe I can help you make one up some time."  
"I'll make one special, just for you, how would that be?" She smiled softly at this, recognizing it as a rather inexperienced person's attempt at flirting.  
"That would be just fine Naota. And will you play it for me when its done?"  
"Sure. If you don't mind waiting till its done."  
"I'll wait forever, if I have to." With that she rose, and gave him her lovely eyes one more time. "I'll see you around, Naota." She left Naota alone, feeling rather content with himself. Overall, this day had actually not been that bad.  
Another waitress plopped another cup of coffee down in front him. He eyed it suspiciously.  
"Okay, who sent me this one?"  
"A lady."  
"Another one? Who this time?" He followed the pointing finger once again, and this time found it led to cinnamon skinned, freckle faced, blonde haired woman, older than Naota, but still bright eyed and eager. He squinted for a moment as he tried to recognize her, and then felt afraid when realization struck him.  
"You're..." he started to say when he stood before her.  
"I'm agent Kitsurubami of the Interstellar Immigration Bureau. And you are Nandaba Naota. Mind if we talk?" 


	9. Seduction for Dummies

"Find him. Talk to him. Interrogate him. Get whatever you can from him." Amarao screeched as the doctors attempted to stitch the wounds over his eyebrows.  
"Administrator Amarao, please calm down..." Kitsurubami pleaded from across the room. Her boss had always been a curiosity to her. But on this occasion, he was absolutely frightening. The hideous injuries over his eyes were the worst she had ever seen on anyone. His voice had attained the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard. He thrashed about in the hospital bed, nearly pulling the tube from his arm.  
"She's back on this planet! We have to find her before its too late!"  
"We don't even know what she wants..."  
"I know!" he roared, "He told me! Just find Naota and talk to him!"  
"But what if he doesn't want to tell me anything?"  
"Use whatever methods you have to!"  
  
"Kitsurubami? Yo, anyone home?" Naota said, regaining her attention. She shook her head, the image of her boss yelling quickly rushing from her mind. She looked straight at Naota.  
"Sorry" she said, "I was just thinking."  
"No problem. Now, what did you want to talk to me about?"  
Kitsurubami strained for a moment for how she was going to approach this. She remembered Amarao's words: 'use whatever methods you have to.' A thought occurred to her. She lowered her head for a moment, put on her best sexy look, and then raised her eyes to meet Naota's. Naota was startled for a moment, not sure why she was looking at him that way.  
"Well...there are some things I need to discuss with you..." she said, trying her best to sound lusty.  
"Like what?" Kitsurubami remained silent for a full minute, struggling to think of what to do next. It had been a while since she had deliberately tried to attract a man, and she had almost forgotten how to do it. Finally, an idea struck her. She sipped her coffee, narrowing her eyes seductively at him.  
"Well, there are some rumors going around about you..." she dipped her finger into the steamy liquid and then yelped. She had not realized just how hot it really was.  
"You okay?" Naota said, his confusion evident.  
"Oh yeah, fine!" she scrambled to say. She stuck her burned finger in her mouth and sucked on it, both to soothe the pain and to continue the act. He slid back in his seat, trying to put a little distance between himself and Kitsurubami. He was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable.  
"So, what's this about rumors?"  
"Well, people say they've been seeing you hanging around with certain women recently..." she traced her finger around the rim of her cup. "You're photographer friend, and just the other day you were spotted in a supermarket talking to some corporate girl..." Naota stiffened up, his back straight against his seat. "And your landlady says that she's heard you in your apartment talking to someone...you're quire the lady's man, aren't you Naota?"  
"No, not really" Naota stuttered, trying to ignore the irritating feeling that was coming from his ankle. It felt almost like an itch, or a tickle. He rubbed the edge of his foot against his ankle, and it disappeared for a second.  
"Then why all are all these girls following you around, all of a sudden?" Naota flinched as he felt the tickling by his ankle resume. It was starting to seriously annoy him. He rubbed his foot against his ankle, and again it disappeared. No, there it was again. He angrily stomped his foot down on whatever it was.  
"Ow!" Kitsirubami shouted, leaping to her feet. She hopped around for a second, clutching her foot.  
"What's wrong?" Naota said, standing as well.  
"Nothing! Nothing!" she said, louder than she intended. Everyone in the coffee shop was looking at them. Her cinnamon cheeks turned pinkish, and she sat back down.  
"Are you sure? Your face is turning red." Naota pointed out when he sat a well.  
"I'm fine!" she snarled. Naota cringed back, and she realized her mistake. She quickly resumed her seducing, placing her elbows on the table, her chin resting on the top of her hands. She tilted her head to the side and tried to sound playful. "By the way, I noticed before that there is a couple of Vespa's parked outside your building. Does one of them belong to you?"  
"No, my landlady owns one, I...don't know whose the other one is..." he said, trying to chuckle as if he found the whole situation amusing. His eyes flicked desperately around the room, looking for some way to get out of this.  
"Aw, that's too bad. But I guess you're more a speed machine kind of guy. You like speed, Naota?"  
"Um...yeah, I guess..."  
"Me too. The intensity, the thrills..." she began to edge up on her elbows, leaning her torso out over the table a bit. "The pulse pounding, adrenaline pumping, ooh I just can't resist it!" she said, steeling slightly as she leaned in closer to him. "Maybe we should go for a ride together, sometime..." as she was about to lean in closer, her arm slipped and she crashed, face down, onto the hard wood of the table.  
"Hey, you all right?" Naota said, jumping up to help her. Kitsurubami sat back in her seat, her face more than a little red now.  
"Yeah, I'm great..." she said sarcastically, taking a deep swig of her coffee. When she set her cup back down, a small line of blood was starting to ebb down from her nose.  
"Hey, you're bleeding!" Naota said. He got to his feet, grabbing his napkin, and knelt down in front of her.  
"Hey, hey, you don't have to..."  
"Don't worry about it. Just tilt your head back, here..." he said as he helped her ease her head back. He pressed the tissue against her nostril. In a few seconds, the blood stopped. He wiped over her lip. When she brought her eyes back to him, they had a new look in them.  
"Thanks...that was really sweet..." she said, her cheeks starting to get pinkish again.  
"Um...no problem..."  
"So few people ever do stuff like that for me..." her eyes had gained a sort of shine that for some reason made Naota a little nervous. She began to lean in toward him. Naota felt his own cheeks getting hot as she came closer...  
"HEY! HANDS OFF MY MAN!" Haruko's piercing shout seemed to tear through both of them, almost the way her bass tore into the back of Kitsurubami's head, knocking her chair over, spilling her onto the floor.  
"Haruko!" Naota said, jumping to his feet. Kitsurubami shook off the effects of Haruko's blow, and raised her eyes to her assailant. Her jaw dropped, and her bronze skin got pale as the blood washed from her face.  
"You...you...you..." she stuttered, pointing at Haruko with her trembling hand.  
"Yeah, me! And if you touch Takun again, I'll flatten you out!" Haruko growled. She yanked Naotao to her, her strong arm coiled around his neck. She dragged him out of the coffee shop, his protests muffled as his face was currently mashed against her breasts.  
Kitsurubami remained on the floor, stunned speechless. After a few moments, she reached into her pocket and whipped her cell phone up to her face.  
"Commander Amarao! It's a definite, she's here!"  
"You saw her?" Amarao shouted from the other end.  
"Yeah, she was hard to miss..." Kitsu muttered, rubbing the back of her head. 


	10. Seduction for Pro's

"I am not your man!" Naota shouted at Haruko once they were inside his apartment.  
"Yes you are" Haruko said casually over her shoulder as she strode into the living-room. "I saw you first, so you're mine."  
"Damn it Haruko, be serious!" He stormed after her. She was seated on the couch, lightly plucking on the strings of her bass. She kept her eyes lowered, not meeting his. "Why do you keep doing this to me? Wasn't ruining my life once enough for you? What next, are you going to get me evicted?" As if somehow summoned by this statement, there was an angry stamp on the floor above his apartment.  
"Give her a valium, Naota! Take one yourself!" one of his neighbors shouted from above. Naota ground his teeth and clenched his fists tight until his frustration died down a bit.  
"Listen, Takun..." Haruko said. Her voice was softer now, sensitive, and it struck him. She seemed to have transformed before his eyes. She had changed from the playful, eccentric woman he had always known into someone from a soap opera right in front of him. She stood up and came in front of him, not looking into his eyes. "I know what I did to you was wrong...and I understand why you're so mad at me...but I don't have any friends left, I've lost my job, I lost Atomsk, so my life's quest was for nothing...Takun, you're all I have left...I can't let some other woman steal you away from me now that I have you again..."  
Naota stood, stunned. His jaw hung open as he struggled for something to say.  
"Haruko, I..." she silenced him by placing a finger up against his lips. She finally brought her eyes up to meet his, and Naota felt himself drown in those twin oceans of green. There was an emptiness, a sadness in those eyes that he had never seen on Haruko before, and it scared him. After a few moments of silence she threw her arms around her, rubbing her face desperately against his shoulder.  
"Takun...don't be mad at me...please..." she said, her voice trembling as if on the verge of tears.  
"Haruko...I'm not mad..." he said, bringing his arms up around her.  
"Really?" she whispered.  
"Yeah...I'm actually a little flattered...I didn't know you felt this way..."  
"Not mad?"  
"Not mad." He smiled gently and patted her on her back.  
"Then you won't mind this!" she shoved him back against the wall, slamming her body up against his in a flash, and pressed her lips against his. Naota's eyes became as large as dinner plates. Her kisses still had the same effect on him now that they had all those years ago; they drained him of his strength, left his legs wobbly and weak, sucked away all the thoughts that had previously been moving through his mind. His instincts began to take over again...his eyes flicked around, half expecting to see his father glaring at them with his face turning different shades.  
"Admit it Takun, you still like that" Haruko said. All the sadness that had been in those eyes moments ago was gone. In its place was a fire that Naota could feel beginning to burn in himself as well. She leaned up and gave him a series of smaller, lighter kisses that still left him reeling. He felt the desire he had known for her in his childhood rising to the surface once again, felt his desire to return those kisses, felt his desire for more... "Its not wrong if we both want it..." Haruko whispered in his ear.  
The ringing of the phone was a welcome interference.  
"I'll get it!" Naota said quickly, hurrying to the phone and tearing it off the receiver. "Please say this is something important" he said into the speaker.  
"Naota...its me..." Mamimi said from the other end.  
"Oh...hi" Naota said, huddling up slightly, hoping that Haruko would not hear. After seeing how she reacted to Kitsurubami's strange behavior, he did not want to imagine what she would do knowing Mamimi had his phone number.  
"Naota...there's something we really need to talk about..." she said. Something in her voice disturbed him.  
"Mamimi, is everything all right?"  
The response came in the form of the phone being torn from her hands, and the voice of Jakun made Naota go pale.  
"She's all taken care of now."  
"You bastard" Naota growled, "What did you do to her?"  
"Nothing...yet. She'll stay just fine if you do exactly as I say."  
  
"You gentleman may be the last line of defense this planet has" Amarao said firmly. He paced back and forth before the line of agents. They all wore dark suits and sunglasses, their hands were clasped behind their backs. Kitsurubami stood off to the side, watching the briefing with a feeling of dread.  
"The enemy is powerful, and ruthless," he continued. "she is able to dodge bullets, so you will have to fire as many shots as possible and pray you hit the target....what?" he growled when he saw the apprehensive looks they all gave him. They instantly stood back up straight, their faces neutral. Amarao sniffed, and went on. "Do not engage in close combat unless totally necessary. She uses her guitar mainly to...what?" he growled a second time. Once again, they resumed proper posture. "Now, you remember that you all are agents of the Intergalactic Immigration Bureau. You maintain your best behavior at all times, and don't make any...what?"  
"What the commander is trying to say," Kitsurubami jumped in, both figuratively and literally, "Is that this is a dangerous and crucial assignment. We ask that you all be as careful as possible, and take no unnecessary risks. And remember, this is a team effort, no bullheaded heroics."  
"Yes ma'am." They all replied.  
"Thank you agent Kitsurubami. Couldn't have put it better myself." He turned back to the line of agents and nodded gravely. "You are dismissed. Make us proud."  
Kitsurubami handed each of the agents a folder containing information applicable to their mission. The last one in line muttered to her.  
"What happened to his eyebrows?"  
"Don't ask." She replied.  
  
"Takun, where are you going, I thought we were having fun." Haruko whined as Naota moved for the door.  
"I have to go someplace Haruko. I don't know when I'll be back."  
"I'll come with you. Just let me grab my..."  
"No!" Naota said firmly. "I have to go alone."  
"Why?"  
"Because I just have to, okay!" he snarled. He caught himself, and sighed. "I'm sorry...but this is important. I have to go someplace alone, or else something bad may happen. I'll be back as soon as I can, promise. Just wait here for me, okay?"  
She looked torn, uncertain, but finally shook her head. She bit her lip as he left. 


	11. Jakun's offer

"Target sighted. Repeat, Mature Man, this is Party Group, the target is sighted."  
"Is it blue?" Amarao said back over his cell phone. The group of agents he had briefed an hour earlier were sitting outside Naota's apartment inside a van that looked like a party entertainment service. Amarao was sitting in his own car outside the park. Kitsurubami was with him.  
"'Mature Man'." She groaned to herself, sinking down into the seat. "Sir, Medical Mechanica doesn't use code names, why are we using them?"  
"It sounds professional. Now hush." He talked into his phone again. "Once you have a confirmed blue, move in. Keep me updated."  
"Why aren't we with them?" Kitsurubami said, watching her boss out of the corner of her eyes.  
"I don't entirely trust our...informant in this matter. I want to be right here to see what he's up to."  
"Who is this informant you keep talking about? Is he the guy who did that to you?" she said, pointing toward the bandages over Amarao's eyes.  
"I told you already, I'd prefer not discuss that." He said, whimpering slightly at the memory. Kitsurubami remained silent for a while.  
  
Naota looked down at his reflection in the water of the fountain. His whole form rippled with the flow of the water, reflecting the inner turmoil he felt. This day had started out so calmly, now it was all turning into total chaos. First he ran into Eri, which was nice. Then he talked to Kitsurubami, which was strange. Then he got seduced by Haruko, which was disturbing. And now he was being threatened by Jakun, which was terrifying. If he knew what else was going on at that very moment, he would have felt even worse.  
The sound of a guitar suddenly being played nearby shook him from his thoughts. He spun around to find Jakun, seated on his motorcycle not ten feet away. He sat, casually strumming his guitar, acting almost as if Naota wasn't there.  
"What do you want? Where's Mamimi?" Naota said, trying his best to sound threatening. Jakun stopped playing, and then turned his eyes to Naota, as if Naota had just walked up to him in the street.  
"You're woman is fine. Both of them."  
"Both of..." Naota considered this for a moment before horrific realization flooded to him. "Eri!" he shouted, as if she were somehow going to respond at that exact moment.  
"They can't hear you kid. They are both far away from here. I needed to use the both of them so we can talk." He paused a moment for effect, then went on. "I heard you play in that coffee shop. You play pretty good. But you're good at other things, I expect. Like the N-O Channels that come out of your head. You seem to be good at those too."  
"I'm not good at those. I don't have any control over them. Now what do you want?"  
"Don't you?" he hissed as he slid off his bike seat and started to walk toward Naota. "Didn't you ever notice how they started whenever you panicked? Whenever you were in danger? And you claim you have no control over them?"  
This left Naota speechless. His mind began to wander back, to retrace from the very first time he remembered something leaping out of his head. And he remembered the emotional turmoil that had raged through him each time it had happened. "You've got potential, kid" Jakun went on. "No human can open N-O Channels like that. And they way you merged with Atomsk, controlled his infinite N-O. Remarkable. But you don't know how to use it yet. It's reacting to your emotions, not to your thoughts. You need to learn, to refine it. Haruko knows it. Why do you think she came back?"  
"She said..."  
"She lied." Jakun was standing directly in front of Naota now, towering over him like an adult over a child. But still, he made no aggressive maneuvers, no sudden actions. He kept Naota firmly locked with his eyes. "She told people about you, Naota. Important people, who are just dying to meet you now, that's why she's here. Its her ticket back in, and she knows it. But I can take you so much farther; make you so much greater than she ever could. You can be more than her, more than me, more than the Pirate King himself. All you have to do is say yes, Naota. Come on board, we can help you shine." With these last words, the water of the found rippled as if touched by an invisible force, sending sparkling drops flying into the air.  
Naota was silent. The enormity of Jakun's words had drained all his convictions away, and he struggled for a response.  
  
"Its blue!" shouted the lead agent of the IIB's team as he kicked in the door to Naota's apartment. The door flew off its frame, and they swarmed into the narrow hallway.  
"Blue!" echoed five more agents as they crashed through the windows of the living room and bedroom. They rolled along the floor and leapt to their feet, weapons leveled. But to the surprise of each and ever one of them, they found nothing but empty space. They all stared at each other in the darkness.  
"So what do we do now?" one of them muttered. The response came in the form of Haruk's Vespa crashing through the wall, screeching to a stop in the center of the living room. Haruko cackled maniacally as she leveled her bass and began firing on the IIB agents, her guitar firing like a shotgun.  
"It was a trap!" one of them screamed in confusion as he ducked behind Naota's couch, which was promptly blown to pieces.  
  
"It was a trap!" the voice over the phone screamed, followed by the sound of weapons firing and the screams of the team.  
"Party Group? Party Group! Respond!" Amarao shouted into his phone. He ground his teeth. If he had still had his eyebrows, they would have twitched with irritation. "They're gone." He growled as he clicked his phone shut.  
"Are you sure?" Kitsurubami asked, disbelieving.  
"This whole thing is coming apart," Amarao said. He reached into his coat and produced his own pistol. "We're going to have to move on this ourselves." 


	12. Battle Royal

"What do you say, Naota?" Jakun pressed. Naota leaned against the fountain, holding back the tears that were threatening to pour from his eyes. They were not just caused by the turmoil raging inside him now, they were tears of physical discomfort; his head was starting to hurt.  
"Just tell me where Mamimi and Eri are...please..." he strained through his teeth. Jakun remained standing where he was.  
"If I do let you know where your precious girls are, you will consider this offer, yes?" Naota shook his head, unable to speak as his whole concentration was focusing on the throbbing in his temples. "Good. Your friends are my guests, tucked comfortably away at..."  
"Hold it! Stay right where you are!" Amarao shouted. Jakun spun to face Amarao and Kitsurubami.  
"What the hell are you doing here?" he snorted. "You were supposed to..."  
"I'm taking charge from here on!" Amarao said, trying his best to sound authoritative. He held both his guns up, clenching his teeth when Jakun grimaced, showing his teeth. Amarao remembered those teeth...  
"You are in violation of Intergalactic Immigration Bureau regulation number..." Kitsurubami's voice faded as she began to realize just what Jakun's words implied. "Wait a minute, what does he mean 'you were supposed' to do something?" she turned her accusing eyes onto her commander, who now cowered back not from Jakun, but from her.  
"Well...I...that is...you see..." he stuttered, trying to come up with a quickie excuse. Before he could think of anything, Jakun's motorcycle roared past the two of them, knocking Amarao over and causing Kitsurubami to shriek. It screeched to a halt next to its master. Jakun retrieved his guitar from where he had left it on his bike. He sneered and plucked one of its strings. As the chord echoed through the silence of the park, small sparks began to generate along the length of the guitar's neck. The sparks grew into small jolts of electricity. Jakun swung his guitar back, threw it forward, and shot a bolt of lightning straight at the two agents.  
As Kitsurubami shrieked, Naota doubled over, groaning with pain as the pulsing in his head grew to near unbearable levels.  
"Not so fast!" Haruko shouted as her Vespa tore into the confrontation. She swung her bass hard, smacking the bolt Jakun had unleashed away, sending it crashing into a tree nearby, causing it to burst into flames.  
"Too late Haruko" Jakun hissed when she came to a stop. They exchanged hateful glares. "He knows the truth now."  
"Your version of it" she threw back. "That's my Takun! And that's my dweeb!" she said, pointing at Amarao. "You can't have either of them! They're mine, you hear, mine!" she charged him on her Vespa, swinging her bass hard, ready to level him with a blow to shatter mountains.  
Jakun parried with his own guitar. The collision of the two cosmic entities created a small shockwave that made the ground rumble. Jakun grabbed Haruko's collar, ripped her from the seat of her Vespa, tossed her away. She landed firmly on her feet, ready to face her opponent.  
They were interrupted by a rain of bullets as Amarao opened fire. He screamed at the top of his lungs, a vein bulging in his forehead.  
"I've had just about enough of you." Jakun said, his voice laced with contempt. He waved his guitar in the air as if it were a magic wand, and the bullets Amarao was hoping would hit their targets froze in midair, spun around, and flew toward their new target. Only one of them hit Amarao's shoulder, the rest flew overhead when Kitsurubami tackled into her boss, pulling him to the ground.  
Jakun blocked Haruko's next attack as if he had been one step ahead of her. They tore into each other. Each time their guitar's struck against each other, it created a small rumble like lightning in the distance. The ground shifted under their feet, the impact of each blow registering all around them.  
"Did you think you could keep something like this a secret?" Jakun growled at her over the din of their combat.  
"Natao's mine!" Haruko screamed, the passion of the moment even making her forget her usual nickname for Naota.  
"Both of you go to hell!" Kitsurubami shouted as she opened fire. Haruko dodged each shot expertly and hauled Kitsurubami up by her collar.  
"You stay out of it!" she said, tossing the agent aside before leaping back into the fray with Jakun.  
Naota struggled to his feet, his head feeling like it was going to explode. He groaned, clutching the sides of his head. The horrible pounding inside his skull overtook the sounds of the battle waging around him. Finally, he raised his own voice above even the horrible pulsing between his ears.  
"Everybody just BACK OFF!" he blasted at the top of his lungs. The moment the words left his mouth, a massive surge of N-O surged from his head, sweeping through the whole area. It ripped Haruko and Jakun both off their feet, tossed them through the air, Jakun crashing down through a park bench, Haruko landing high in a tree. Amarao was instantly thrown from the ground he lay on, and dropped into the wishing fountain. Kitsurubami struggled to cling to the ground, but found herself yanked up and dropped into a wastebasket. Haruko's Vespa and Jakun's bike both were knocked over, Kitsurubami's car overturned.  
Naota collapsed to his knees, his breath coming in labored gasps. He struggled to regain his senses. His felt as if his whole body had been battered. The world was spinning. His heart threatened to burst from his chest. Each breath burned ice-hot in his lungs. But finally, he managed to calm his heart to a normal pace. It was then he became aware of the labored breathing above him.  
Naota raised his eyes, and found Jakun standing above him. His spiked hair was undone, a few strands hanging down in front of his eyes. His black attire was ripped and dirtied. He glared down at Naota, his eyes burning. He clapped one hand over Naota's face and yanked him to his feet. Naota waited for the final moment to come, but instead felt Jakun's hand slap hard over his forehead.  
"Let's see you open one through those." Jakun muttered. He let Naota drop to the ground and then moved to retrieve his fallen motorcycle. Naota reached up and felt the familiar fuzzy of fake eyebrows over his own, and he smelled something that reminded him of glue. "Think about what I've said." Jakun shouted as he revved his motorcycle up and roared off into the darkness.  
"Jakun, you baka, get back here!" Haruko screamed as she struggled down from the tree. She hurried to her Vespa and took off after him.  
Naota stumbled to his feet, not sure of what to do next. Finally, he turned in the direction of his apartment building and started for home.  
"My eyebrows..." Amarao sputtered, spitting water from his mouth as he pulled himself out of the fountain. "He's got my eyebrows..." 


	13. Things Get Serious

Naota sniffled as he made his way home. He constantly fingered the large, fuzzy caterpillars that were now attached to his head. He had tried to tug them off for a little bit, but finally had decided to just wait till the glue dissolved rather than rip the skin off his own face trying to pull them off.  
As he walked, he kept playing over and over in his mind the events of this night. Was Jakun telling the truth? Did he have that kind of power within him? And what's more, was Haruko lying to him all along? But then again, what if it was Haruko who was telling the truth, and Jakun who was lying. What if Haruko really did have some sort of feelings for him, and it was Jakun who simply wanted that power? And above all this, how was he going to save Mamimi and Eri? He groaned and rubbed his temples. He had a headache coming on; he just hoped nothing leapt out of his skull this time.  
  
"Stupid Haruko...stupid Jakun..." he muttered as he approached his building. "Costing me my friends, my life my...my apartment!" he yelped when he saw the piece of paper taped to the door. He ripped it from its place and read aloud the words printed boldly on it" "Eviction Notice?!"  
He tore the door open and collapsed to his knees when faced with the chaos within.  
"Its not as bad as I thought it was." Haruko's voice came from behind him. He looked over his shoulder, eyes narrowed with rage, most of it at her.  
"You completely wrecked my place!" Naota growled.  
"Ah, it was a tiny apartment anyway" Haruko said casually while digging in her ear with her finger, "I bet we could get a much better place somewhere else."  
"What do you mean 'we'?" Naota said, rising to his feet and storming into the wrecked apartment. He instantly made for his bedroom, determined to collect whatever belongings where left over before he tried to find a hotel room.  
"I mean we as in the plural of you and me" Haruko said, following him, "By the way, nice eyebrows." Naota spun around to face her, his eyes bloodshot with anger.  
"Will you shut up!" he wailed. He was silenced by the sound of his upstairs neighbor stomping on the floor above them.  
"You've been evicted Naota! Get out and leave everyone alone!" the angry voice shouted from above.  
"Oh go to hell!" Naota screamed in response. He grabbed the nearest piece of debris and hurled it at the ceiling, making his own banging response to the stomping.  
"Takun, calm down." Haruko said, holding her hands up as if trying to ward off an attack. She actually looked surprised to see the incredible anger Naota was seething.  
"My name is Naota! Not Takun, Naota! Get it right!" Naota roared at her.  
"All right, all right, Naota" she said, finally using his true name. "Just calm down, will you."  
"Calm down? CALM DOWN??? Look at my place! Look at my life!" He pointed an accusing finger at her, and she actually took a reflexive step back. "Its because of you! All of this is because of you! Everything was fine before you came back!"  
"You don't mean that..."  
"Don't I?" Naota said, exasperated that she had even said that to him. He spun back to his dresser, yanking his clothes from the drawers and stuffing the hastily into an overnight bag. "Just do me a favor and get out of my life, please!" he threw over his shoulder at her.  
"No way Naota! Jakun is still out there somewhere. I can't let you go around unprotected while he's around."  
"I don't need your protection!" he hissed as he the strap of his bag over his shoulder. "I'll take care of Jakun myself! Then I'll save Mamimi and Eri! And then I'll get on with my life, without you!" He marched forward, pushing past Haruko. She watched as he made for the door, her lower lip trembling a little. Then he face burned into a look of painful determination.  
"Sorry Naota, but this time I'm staying." She smacked Naota hard behind his head with her bass. Naota remained standing for a moment before he collapsed, his world going dark...  
  
"This isn't over. We can still salvage this." Amarao insisted. Kitsurubami stared him in disbelief. He stood before the massive monitor at the IIB headquarters, watching as their battle was replayed time and time again. His arm was in a sling now, his shoulder wound rendering him unable to use it without considerable pain. His bright red hair dye had been washed out by the fountain water, leaving it it's true, somber color. Right now, he had never looked more pathetic. But he had also never seemed as fanatically determined, and what little faith Kitsurubami had had left in her boss's abilities was quickly fading.  
"With all due respect sir, this has been a disaster from the start. We should do whatever we can to detach ourselves from it before it gets worse."  
"I won't let her get away with whatever she's trying. Her and that freak with the spiky hair. And that bratty kid too. They're all going down for this."  
"Naota hasn't done anything," she said, her temper starting to rise as his ranting grew more and more nonsensical. "He's just as much a victim in this as we have been."  
"He's in on it somehow, I know it. Now quickly scramble a new team, with really big guns this time. I mean the biggest. And get me some candy, I need something sweet."  
"That does it!" she shouted, drawing the attention of all the other agents in the room. Amarao turned to her, truly not realizing what was now happening.  
"Kitsurubami, that was a direct order. I want you to..."  
"With all due respect, sir" she hissed, her voice laced with sarcasm, "You have been abusing your position for your personal grudge against Haruko, and now you have been risking the lives of Bureau agents and civilians for kamikaze missions, and now you don't even know when to quit!" Every agent in the room took in a gasp, having never seen such rage from this normally shy and withdrawn woman. Amarao himself stumbled back, unable to believe the venom in her words.  
"You-you're out of order, Agent Kitsurubami..." he stuttered.  
"It's about time someone was!" she shouted. She reached out and tore the pin baring the IIB insignia away from Amarao's collar. She threw it the ground and stomped it. "I'm stripping you of command! Security, somebody, arrest this man!"  
Everyone in the room rose to their feet and applauded as two agents stepped forward and grabbed either of Amarao's arms. He began kicking and screaming as they dragged him from the room.  
"Kitsurubami, you little traitor! I'll get you for this, you hear me!" his voice faded as they pulled him further away.  
"All right" Kitsurubami said, her face grave and serious as she turned to address every agent in the room. "Until further notice, I am in command from here out. I want every agent in the field to withdraw to purely observatory positions until notified otherwise. And for God's sake, someone get me a cup of coffee!" everyone scrambled to follow her orders, not wanting to risk her seemingly unstoppable wrath.  
"You realize, Ma'am" one agent said as he handed her the desired cup of caffeine, "You could be court marshaled, or even imprisoned for this."  
"It will be worth it to make things make sense for just a little while" she sighed and took a deep swig of her drink.  
  
"Hold on Eri...I think I've almost got it." Mamimi said as she struggled to loosen the knot that bound they're hands together. They had been tied to chairs, back to back, the ropes keeping them restrained to their seats both at once. Blindfolds left them unable to see save to tell day from night. They had become reacquainted through talking.  
"Hurry Mamimi, he could be back any minute!" Eri urged. She struggled in her chair, trying to loosen some of the ropes more to grant her friend further mobility.  
"Almost there..." Mamimi said, her tongue touching her upper lip unconsciously as she tried to work her fingers a little faster...  
"Impressive. A few more seconds and you might actually have done it." Jakun's voice sliced the hope they had been building clean in two as his hand clapped down onto Mamimi's. They both gave horrified shrieks and struggled as best they could to try to loosen the ropes even as he tightened them further around them. Small drops of blood formed as the rope burned the skin of their wrists and ankles.  
"What do you want with us?" Eri said between the tears of desperation.  
"You two are nothing to me. It's your friend Naota I'm interested in."  
"Naota? What do you want with him?" Mamimi said, her curiosity truly perked.  
"He's not a bad kid. We had a meeting earlier. Didn't go the way I'd hoped, but at least I know he won't be giving me much trouble next time."  
"Next time?" Eri sniffled.  
"Yeah. All I need is for him to make up his mind, and then we find out who is right, and who is dead." With that, he left them, screaming for help in the dark. 


	14. Preparing for Battle

"Wakey, wakey, Takun..."  
Naota's eyes fluttered open. He moaned softly through the tape as he became aware of the throbbing in his head. Wait...tape? His eyes now bulged open, and he came to realize that there was a strip of duct tape over his mouth. He looked around, and found that more tape held his arms and ankles to the frame of a bed.  
And at the foot of the bed stood Haruko. She was pulling her pants on. She then reached for her shirt. Naota's eyes went even larger as ideas of why she had even been undressed to begin with began to flood his eyes. Haruko turned to face him, her bare breasts jiggling a little with the movement. Naota tried not to watch, but could not help but gawk a little. Haruko came to the side of the bed and tore the tape away from his mouth, ignoring his yelp of pain.  
"You drugged me and violated me, didn't you, you sick freak?" Naota groaned, tilting his head back.  
"Relax Taku-er, Naota. I didn't do anything...yet." She smiled wickedly and winked. "I was just taking a shower."  
"Where are we? And why am I tied up?" he demanded, trying his best to sound impressive, considering his present position.  
"I got us a hotel room. I hope you don't mind, I had to use you're credit card." Naota rolled his eyes and groaned. "You're here to keep you safe," Haruko went on. "I can't have you running around while Jakun is out there, and while you can't use you're N-O."  
"He was right!" Naota yelled accusingly at her. "You never wanted me, just my head!"  
Haruko sat down on the bed next to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, nuzzling her face against his. "Oh, I want your head..." she lowered her hand and gave his groin a squeeze, eliciting a groan from him, "And I want THIS head."  
"What are you talking about now?" he said, his anger rising. She silenced him by pressing her lips to his. The kiss left him more confused than inspired. Haruko placed her hand on his cheek, gazing softly into his eyes.  
"Don't you see, Naota? We're perfect for each other! I can teach you how to use you're N-O, and then we can be together, forever!" she gave him a tight squeeze that Naota thought for sure would crush him alive.  
"You're just trying to use me again" he said, turning his face away from hers.  
"Now don't be like that" Haruko said, laying down on top of him, her breasts rubbing against his chest, only adding to his discomfort. "All great relationships start with a little distance. But before you know it, we'll be chasing stars together! After we destroy Medical Mechanica..." she muttered the last part.  
"What?!" Naota shouted, his voice cracking.  
"Oops, look's like I've said too much!" She stood up and pasted on her best innocent look. She resumed dressing.  
"What are you doing!" he shouted when he saw her reach for her bass.  
  
"I'm going to finish with Jakun" she said, matter of factly, "Then I'm going to finish the IIB, and then I'm going to get us off this planet. We'll go somewhere quiet where I can teach you to use you're N-O." She wrapped her scarf around her neck and pulled her riding goggles on while she spoke. She waived gaily to him as she made for the door. "You just stay here now, and I'll be back before you know it!"  
Naota screamed as the door shut.  
  
"Subject is leaving the hotel and heading North" the voice over the speaker crackled. "Do you want us to pursue?"  
"No. Just stay where you are and keep us updated." Kitsurubami cupped her hands in front of her face, analyzing the situation. Naota had not left with Haruko, which meant he was either still in there, or they had finally split. She tried to consider what to do next.  
"Why don't you want them to follow her?" one of the other officers asked.  
"We have units all over, another of the is bound to spot her. Besides, we have to find that kid. He's the only one who can match up to those two."  
"What makes you so sure we can trust him? He isn't affiliated with us in any way, really."  
"I just...have a feeling." She stood up from the desk and started for the exit.  
"Where are you going, Ma'am?"  
"For a walk. It'll help me think." She exchanged salutes with the other officers, and then left.  
  
Eri and Mamimi both took deep gulps of air when the ropes fell from around their bodies. Their chests had been constricted, and their breathing had been hard ever since he had tied them up. The air flooded their lungs with cold sharpness.  
"Get up, both of you" he ordered. They both stood, as told. He placed his hands on their shoulders and started guiding them. They felt a rush of cool air and the distinct sounds of outdoors.  
"Where are we going?" Eri asked between tears.  
"We're going for a ride."  
  
Naota gave a laugh of triumph as he managed to get his hand free. His laugh turned to a groan, and he kissed his hand, hoping it would somehow soothe the pain it had taken to tip it out from the mound of duct tape that held it. When his lips touched his own skin, he was struck by how smooth it seemed, and then groaned when he realize the tape had torn all the hair from his hand and wrist.  
He hastily went to work on his other hand, using the free one to help peel away the layers of the sticky, gray stuff. He had to stop Haruko and Jakun both before they destroyed the whole city, if not the whole planet. And he had to save Mamimi and Eri, above all. Thoughts raced through his mind so fast he could scarcely keep up with them.  
There! With both hands free, he attacked his ankles. He had no idea where Haruko had run off to, but he doubted she would be hard to find, she tended to stand out. And if she was going off to confront Jakun, he would just have to follow the trail of chaos. And what had happened to Amarao and Kitsurubami? He struggled with these thoughts and with the tape.  
Finally free! He hurriedly jumped up. Haruko had brought the bag he had packed with them, and he was grateful for it now. He quickly found some fresh clothes, his currents ones having been soaked through with sweat as he freed himself. As he laced up his sneakers, more thoughts buzzed him. Maybe he should just let the two of them destroy each other, and then his problems would be over. But if he did, what would happen to Mamimi and Eri? What if Jakun had already killed them? If they died while Haruko was fighting him, he swore, he'd...he didn't know what he would do. For a moment, he felt like breaking down into tears, but he swallowed it all down. He hurriedly raced out the door, down the hall, down the stairs, out the building. The people in the lobby threw him curios glances as he stormed out.  
He went out into the street and paused, trying to think of what to do next. How would he find Haruko?  
"Going somewhere?" The voice made Naota jump. He spun around, not sure what to expect. He felt relieved when he saw Kitsurubami leaning against the outer wall of the building.  
"Yeah, you could say that."  
"Maybe we should talk about what you're going to do first."  
  
Hey peoples! Sorry this chapter took so long for me to get up, but I suffered an injury at the workplace that left me unable to type for a bit. I'm almost totally healed now, and back at work! I also want to take this moment to give a cheap plug for two other works in progress of mine, a fic entitled "Enter Damian" for BIG O, and "Evil Darkstalkers," a crossover of the Darkstalkers anime and the Evil Dead movies. Be sure to check em out, or I'll be sad! Till the next update! 


	15. Naota's Decision

Their gazes burned. Their eyes scalded into each other, filling both of them with mutual malice and hate. They loathed the sight of each other, and were more determined than ever to put and end to this now.  
Haruko stood at one end of the bride leading over Mabase. Jakun stood at its center. They glared at each other. Haruko's mouth turned down onto the most hateful grimace, while Jakun's turned up into a maniacal grin.  
"I knew you'd know how to find me, Haruko." He shouted to her, his voice carrying over the wind that blew over them.  
"You're not hard to miss" she blasted back. She narrowed her eyes and once again affirmed her claim. "Naota's mine!"  
"Not for long. Not once he learns everything about you. You think he'd be interested to learn? I'd be more than happy to tell him everything..." Haruko snarled and began to rev up the engine of her Vespa. But she was frozen when Jakun held his hand up, pointing his finger straight up. He then turned and pointed away. Haruko followed him, and gasped when she saw Mamimi and Eri, tied together, dangling from one of the massive girders of the bridge.  
Jakun's blow leveled Haruko, the impact lifting her off her Vespa, throwing her through the air. She landed with a thud and a grunt. When she looked up, Jakun raised his guitar over his head and smashed it down onto her Vespa. It shuddered under the impact and exploded. Jakun howled with laughter when he saw the rage register on her face.  
Haruko stood to her feet and gripped her bass in her tightening hands.  
"No one...messes...with my ride!" she raised her bass high overhead and rushed in.  
  
"So what are you going to do?" Kitsurubami did not sound sympathetic as she asked this question. She sounded merely curios, with a firm respect for the magnitude of the situation.  
"I don't know...I just don't know!" Naota said, clenching his teeth with frustration. He punched the wall, and then yelped and backed away, clutching his fist. She frowned at his actions, and stepped forward, taking his wounded hand in hers. She blew on the sore knuckles, trying to soothe the skin.  
"My heart goes out to you, Naota. I know how difficult this must all be on you."  
"No, you don't." She made no response, knowing the truth of his words. "By the way...where's your boss?" Naota said curiously.  
"Oh...he's a little indisposed right now."  
  
"I'm telling you, it's a conspiracy!" Amarao shouted. He clapped his feet together, unable to do so with his hands since they were restrained in a straightjacket. He sat in the corner no the floor of the padded room, screaming at the moonlight that pierced in through the bars on the window. "It's a conspiracy, and they're all in on it! Would someone please get me something sweet! I'm going crazy in here!"  
  
"Oh, sorry to hear that." Naota said, shrugging.  
"Yeah. But lets not worry about him" she said quickly. She guided him to a bench and pushed him down into it gently, sitting down alongside him. "Is there anything I can do to help?" she asked him.  
"Not unless you can shoot me."  
"Don't talk like that" she said, really wanting to help. "Maybe you should just step back and examine this situation. What are the odds? What are the consequences? And what do you have to lose?" Naota sighed, rand a hand through his hair and leaned back, trying to give her suggestion real thought.  
On the one hand, he could just let Haruko and Jakun kill each other, that would put both of them out of his hair for good. But who knows how much destruction that would cause? And on top of that, if he let that happen, he might never be able to find Eri and Mamimi. And on the other hand, if Haruko won, she probably would let Eri and Mamimi go, but then she would expect him to go along with whatever it was she had in mind for him. And if Jakun won, then he would probably kill Eri and Mamimi, and who knew what he wanted with him? Or, he could try to intervene himself, try to save his friends, try to end this once and for all. But was he a match for both of them at once? He growled with frustration and clutched his head, feeling as if he had the whole world crashing down onto his shoulders.  
"I just don't know!" he shouted. His voice echoed down the streets, drawing the attention of a few curios passers by. "There's just no way out of this!"  
"There's always a way out" she offered, trying her best to be helpful. He sat back down, leaning his head back. "You're not helpless, Naota. You're the one this all revolves around. You must be too important to not be able to do anything."  
He sat, considering her words. His mind conjured up an old image he had tried his best to bury; Haruko, disappearing into the sky on her Vespa, leaving him standing alone, atop a pile of debris, his own bass clutched in his hand, tears streaming down his eyes. Inside, he felt those old feelings bubbling up to the surface. Was he nothing but a scared little child, still wondering what his own feelings where?  
"No!" he shouted, leaping to his feet. Kitsurubami gave a small squeak and jumped back, surprised by his sudden movement. He blushed with slight embarrassment.  
"Sorry" he said, extending his hand to help her up to her feet. "I think I just realized what I have to do."  
She searched his face, and knew what he was intending. She felt her heard warm with admiration, and then break with concern.  
"Do you want me to come with you? Maybe I can help..."  
"No, this is something I have to do alone. Its time I really did grow up." He gazed skyward, feeling his determination grow with each beat of his heart. Was he, Naota, a hero?  
"By the way, I thought you might want this..." she added, yanking his attention back to her. He could not restrain his smile when she handed him his bass. "Some of our people grabbed it from your apartment, but I got it back for you. I thought you might need it."  
"Thanks, was starting to think I wasn't going to see this again." He took it in his hand and stared hard at it for a moment. He had held it like this a million times before, but for some reason, now it seemed to have assumed a whole new feeling in his hands. It seemed to pulse, radiating a feeling of life and power all of its own. He plucked one of the strings, and it emitted the same sound as always. He smiled, feeling a strange satisfaction with himself.  
"You know Naota, you're a nice guy...I'm sorry this all had to happen to you." He looked at her, and found her face soft with sincere feeling. She stepped closer, leaned in, and kissed his cheek. When she backed away, his jaw hung open for a moment with surprise. Her lips had left a warm sensation on his face, and it gave him comfort. He smiled warmly at her.  
"Thanks."  
"If you need any help out there, you just call out for it. We'll be watching."  
Naota nodded, and set off at a joggers pace, his instincts guiding him where he had to go. 


	16. Rumble in the Urban Jungle

Haruko grunted when her body collided with the asphalt. She rolled to the side as Jakun's base swung down toward her. It tore into the ground, leaving a massive crack in the cement.  
"How long do you think you can keep avoiding me?" Jakun snarled as he took another swing. Haruko ducked it and returned with a swing of her own, which Jakun then deflected with his bass.  
"Just about as long as you can keep being a jerk!" she threw back. She hurled her bass at him; it spun through the air, flying toward him in an unstoppable arc. Jakun leapt high into the air, somersaulting, and the twirling weapon flew beneath him, his feet slamming back to the ground just as flew further away.  
"Missed!" he cackled.  
"Don't be so sure" Haruko said with a mousy smile. Jakun realized what she meant when the guitar made its return flight, swinging around like boomerang. It crashed into him from behind, leveling him like a wrecking- ball. Haruko collapsed and rolled on the ground, roaring with laughter.  
Jakun looked up at her and grunted with frustration. He stuck two of his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly. Haruko was at a loss for what this meant until Jakun's motorcycle ran right over the top of her, leaving tread marks along the back of her clothes. She raised her head, snarling, and watched as he mounted his bike. He screamed, revved the engine, and came charging toward her.  
Haruko leapt to her feet. She smirked mischeviously, tossed her bass to the ground, stood on it, and took off in the air as if she were riding the waves of the ocean on a boogie board. They charged each other like knights ready for the joust. As they crossed, Jakun made a swing, which Haruko jumped over, landing back on her bass expertly. She skidded to a stop and quickly picked her bass up once again.  
Handling it like a shotgun, she fired off a shot, which tore into the tire of Jakun's bike, causing it to slip and come crashing down to the ground. Jakun yanked himself from the wreckage, and then scrambled for cover when Haruko began shooting like a madwoman. He grabbed his bike, hefted it over his shoulders, and threw it at her. It never reached her; Haruko blasting it to pieces as it sailed through the air.  
When the smoke and flame cleared, Jakun leveled his own base and fired off from the hip, just like Haruko. Except he fired a rocket, which roared through the air. Haruko leapt out of the way as it crashed into one of the massive cables that suspended the bridge, blasting it to pieces.  
  
"They're tearing the place apart!" one of the agents commented. The main staff of the IIB all sat huddled in the central chamber, glued to the massive monitor. They watched the battle that was raging with keen interest. Kitsurubami sat in the former commander's chair, watching nervously.  
"I'll put fifty-yen on the crazy one!" one of the agents said suddenly.  
"They're both crazy" Another added.  
"Will you both knock it off!" Kitsurubami shouted, drawing startled stares from her fellow officers. She stared at them, a vein bulging in her forehead. Finally she sat back down in her chair and groaned with resignation.  
"Pardon me, ma'am, but shouldn't we move in?"  
"We can't interfere in this" she replied sadly, "Naota will take care of it. We just have to give him the time."  
"But there are two people's lives hanging in the balance!"  
"I know, I know..." she rubbed her temples. "We just have to watch and pray..."  
  
The firefight went on for several minutes, Jakun firing a stream of rockets, Haruko returning with a hail of bullets. The bridge itself was showing the wear of the battle; the concrete pavement was being blasted to pieces, whole sections of the metal railing torn from its place, massive pieces of debris falling down into the river below.  
Mamimi and Eri watched helplessly as these two lunatics slugged it out, not sure who they were hoping won. Maybe, they both hoped beyond hope, these two would destroy each other. But that still left the question of how they would free themselves unsolved. They both squirmed against the ropes that held them as their captor battled it out with Haruko.  
Haruko blasted one of the rockets as it sailed through air, the explosion momentarily blocking out her line of sight. As the smoke billowed up, Jakun leveled his bass as if it were a golf club, and swung hard, smacking a small piece of debris, sending it flying. It soared through the flames and smacked Haruko in the direct center of her forehead. She stayed upright for a moment, her vision growing blurry, and then collapsed. She reached up and touched her head where the stone had struck her. When she examined her fingers, she found drops of blood.  
The sound of a chainsaw roaring to life drew her attention. She looked up, and found Jakun holding up his base. A series of blades had grown out of it, and now they whirred to life. He grinned maniacally and loosed a loud scream as he came galloping toward her, his bizarre weapon held high overhead. He brought it down in an unstoppable arc, but Haruko raised her own bass above her body, blocking the bow at the last possible moment.  
They strained against each other. Sparks flew from their struggling weapons, from their hate filled glares. Jakun's eyes bulged, bloodshot and full of rage. Haruko's eyes narrowed, determined and planning. Finally, she gave a shove with all the strength she could muster. It threw Jakun back. He stumbled, fell backwards. The whirring blades of his bass dug into the concrete and proceeded to drag him along the ground, his screamed protests drowned out by the sound of the concrete being shredded. It finally came to a stop at the edge of the bride, leaving him mere inches from falling to the waters below.  
Haruko rose, ready to press her advantage, but Jakun now imitated the trick she had used earlier, throwing his bass into the air. Haruko tossed hers up as well, and the two guitar's began clashing against each other like swords in a duel of honor. They stabbed, parried, dodged, and thrust against each other, without any hands guiding them. But eventually they flew back to the hands of their masters, except that Haruko's bass ended up in Jakun's hands, and Jakun's bass ended up being clutched by Haruko. They glowered at each other, and then prepared to exchange weapons. Haruko tossed Jakun's bass back into the air; it floated to him without needing any direction. But Jakun, rather than return Haruko's weapon of choice, smashed it against the ground. It shattered into a thousand splinters.  
Haruko screamed at the top of her lungs and charged Jakun, but was leveled by a punch that threw her to the ground. Jakun stood over her now, his blood soaked grin frightening Haruko now more than she had ever been frightened before.  
"I would have waited centuries for this..." he hissed between his missing tooth. "Its over, Haruko." He began to raise his bass over his head...  
"Not yet its not." Both their heads swung to see this new voice. Jakun grimaced. Haruko vaulted.  
"Takuuuuuun!" she shouted. And it was indeed, the one and only Nandaba Naotao. He stood facing them, his own guitar in his hand. He gulped nervously, and stepped forward.  
  
OOOH, things are really picking up! Hi true believers, this is your humble author once again. It seems I have been frustrating a lot of people with the lack of updates recently, but I have just been busy, busy, busy! But, to try to make up a little bit, I would like to take this opportunity to respond to a few of my wonderful reviewers! mamimi my alter ego : I thought of them when I heard this song too! That is why I chose to quote it in the beginning chapter, and to use it for the title. I just found the lyrics to be totally descriptive of Naota's relationship with Haruko. My-name-is-Wacko : Well, thanks very much for you very flattering review. I do try my best. Hope it keeps up to your expectations. Gecko, and Iloveraharu : Well, I am not sure if Naota will end up with Haruko yet. I really rarely ever know the way my stories will resolve when I start, and this one is no exception. I am sure the answer will reveal it to me soon. Doomboy2000 : Jakun is neither southpaw nor righty, he is just out on his own, heh. To add a lil tidbit for you fans of this story; when I started writing, I originally intended for Jakun to be similar to Agent Smith from The Matrix. He was a neat and clean kind of guy wearing a suit and tie with sunglasses. But, as I continued to brainstorm, I decided it would be better to have him be like Haruko on crack; crazy, unstoppable, nonsensical. And to all the rest of you who have reviewed, thank you from he bottom of my lil heart! I have received more reviews for this fic than for any of my other ones here on ff.net. I appreciate it more than you can never know. Keep reading, true believers, the calm will come after the storm! 


	17. Naota's Transformation

"What the hell is he doing?" Kitsurubami yelled. She was on her feet, hands running anxiously through her blonde hair. The other agents looked at her nervously, more afraid that she was going to explode than they were of the outcome of the events they were still watching.

"I'm getting just a little tired of this..." Jakun hissed as he turned to face Naota. Naota looked up at him, feeling about two feet tall. But he swallowed his fear along with the lump in his throat and kept his composure.

"Me too. So leave me and my friends alone." He started straight into those yellow eyes and tried desperately not to be afraid, even though he was at this moment more desperately frightened than he had ever been before in his life. He gripped his own base tight.

"You've got more balls than brains kid." Jakun growled. He took a menacing step forward. "Why put your own life on the line for her?"

"Because she's my friend..." Naota said, clenching his teeth. His head was starting to throb.

"Takuuun! You do care!" Haruko shouted.

"Shut up!" Jakun snarled at her. He turned his attention back onto Naota, who was starting to tremble, both with fear and with the pain starting to grow in his head. "You can't use N-O right now, kid. Those caterpillars on your head are blocking it."

"I don't need it..." Naota said, holding his groan back. Jakun narrowed his eyes, shook his head and gripped his bass.

"Too bad...you could have been something great." In a flash of movement that took both Haruko and Naota by surprise, Jakun charged in, swinging his bass high overhead, bringing it down in an unstoppable arc down toward Natao's head...

"Takun!" Haruko screamed as the blow came...

The images flowed past him at an astounding pace, yet they were all perfectly clear to him. He felt as if he were floating on air, yet the ground beneath him was solid as rock.

Naota opened his eyes. He was immediately confronted by Amarao, all cleaned up, eyebrows back in place. He was wearing his IIB uniform, looking much like he had when Naota had first met him all those years ago.

"What are you doing here?" Naota demanded. He immediately clapped both hands over his mouth. His voice had come out high-pitched and more than a little screetchy. It sounded just like he did during his first adventure with Haruko as a child. He held his hands away and looked down at them now, and realized that they had shrunken, and indeed, where now the hands of a child. He looked down at himself, and saw his whole body, reverted to as it had been when the Pirate King himself had possessed his body.

"She's got nothing. But you've got friends, and family of your own. That's normal. It's time to start acting like an adult." Amarao said, and then suddenly vanished, fading softly from Naota's vision into the darkness that surrounded them.

"There are always options..." a voice whispered next to his ear. Naota jumped and spun around just in time to see Kitsurubami vanish into the darkness as well.

"I should teach you to be a man, Takun. Just remember to swing the bat." Haruko's voice said from behind him. He spun around just in time to see her, seated on her Vespa, bass clutched in her hands, fading away with the others.

"What the hell is going on here?" Naota shouted. He looked down at his hands, and saw the bass he himself had been clutching turned into a crutch. He yelped and dropped it. As if to answer his question, a shadow loomed over him.

He turned, and found himself face to face with the gigantic form of Atomsk. Naota gasped and stumbled, falling flat onto his butt. He looked up at Atmosk, who seemed totally oblivious to his presence. The Pirate King spread his wings, spanning hundreds of feet. Naota's jaw dropped as he watched the image of brilliance hover above him. But then, Atomsk morphed, seeming to turn into a large ball of energy. It slammed down into the ground before him, and when the dust cleared, the familiar image of a bright red robot stood in its place.

"Canti?" Naota gasped as he recognized the machine coming toward him. Canti reached one red hand down, offering it to Naota. He looked at it skeptically, but finally reached up and clasped it. Canti helped him to his feet.

When Naota was standing again, he looked at himself once again, and found that his body had changed once more, back to his present state. He looked up at Canti's TV head, his eyes demanding an answer.

Canti crouched down and picked up the crutch, which had now turned back into Naota's own bass. He held it up before Naota's eyes, and then swung it high overhead, bringing it down in an unstoppable arc. Naota screamed as it flew toward him.

But nothing happened. Instead of crashing down onto his skull and splitting skin, it made a sort of splat as the flesh of Naota's cranium seemed to meld with it on contact. Canti gripped Naota's shirt by the collar and proceeded to shove down hard onto the bass, pushing it into the suddenly soft flesh. It vanished into him, melted into him, bonded to him. Canti pushed until the instrument had disappeared completely into the young man's body. Then he leaped into the air, clasping Naota's head with both hands, and proceeded to disappear into his head right after the bass. Naota stood, dumbstruck, unable to speak, his eyes rolled up, watching the bright red legs vanish into the flesh of his skull. Once the Atomsk/Canti merge had completely joined him, Naota finally realized.

There was a loud scream. For a moment, Naota thought it had come from him. He waited a moment, sensing his whole body for pain. But there was none. He opened his eyes slowly.

Jakun was standing almost directly in front of him. His eyes bulged, disbelieving. He stared down at his own bass. Naota followed the crazed alien's gaze down, and was a little startled himself to see the wreck that Jakun was clutching in his hands. The blades that had previously whirred along the edge had been chipped away, leaving only glittering shards. The wood had been splintered, broken as if it had broken by being struck against stone.

He looked up, and felt himself awed. The whole world was different! Every sight, every sound, suddenly had a whole new meaning. There were lights, colors, shades, and countless other small details that all of a sudden were clear as day. He felt the vibrations of the earth moving beneath his feet, heard the whispers of the water as it flowed beneath them, smelled the crispness of the air. He felt every cell of his body, working all together, to create him, a creature unique and different from any other. And finally, it was all clear to him.

He reached up with the simplest gesture, and peeled the eyebrows off. They fluttered to the ground and lay, like the feathers of a bird floating on the wind down to earth. Jakun gaped.

"What?! How?? I don't understand..." then his eyes narrowed in rage "The N-O...those things were supposed to block it! How...?"

"It can't be blocked..." Naota said, his voice now more calm and stable than it had ever been. "It can't be blocked, because its part of me. Its not my head that controls it...its me. Its just a single part of everything that makes up me."

"I guess I'll just have to take you apart, piece by piece then!" Jakun snarled. He dropped down to one knee, hefted the remnants of his bass onto his shoulder, and fired one of his rockets at Naota. He grinned maniacally as it tore through the air, and then his jaw hit the ground when it froze suddenly. The flame that propelled it sputtered and died. It clanged to the ground, spent and useless. Jakun could only stare in utter disbelief.

Moving with a simplicity and grace that he had never before possessed, Naota tucked his bass under his arm, raised one hand up, and then strummed it across the strings. The note it struck blasted like an explosion tearing the silence of the quietest night. The shockwaves ripped along the cement, and slammed into Jakun at a velocity unimaginable. Jakun screamed as it tore into him, and struggled for a moment to stay on his feet, but finally was thrown into the air, carried along by the shockwaves, his shouts of protest deafened by the resonating note.

After finally grinding to a halt, Jakun rose, shuddering to his feet. His whole body ached with the force that had just flown through him. When he finally rose up, he looked down and gasped with emberassment as he saw the blast had torn his clothes from his body, leaving him in just a pair of heart-specked boxer shorts. He looked up, stared down the long way he had been thrown at Naota, who looked back at him as if he had not a care in the world.

Jakun was silent only a moment, before roaring with rage and frustration. He charged down the length of the bridge, gaining momentum with each step. Naota did not move, did not flinch, did not show any sign of concern. Jakun's bloodshot yellow eyes bulged, nearly the size of golf-balls as his lungs burned with each breath that steamed out from them. He swung his arm back, like a massive cannon being prepped for firing. He swung his fist forward with momentum to crush mountains.

It collided against Naota's face, and there was a sound like whet broccoli stems being snapped. Jakun screamed with pain and stumbled back. His arm hung at his side, limp and useless. The broken bones nearly burst through his skin, leaving visible bumps and indentations along his arm. And then, there was a sensation that one feels as a jet slowly lifts from the ground into the air. Jakun looked down, and found himself unable to speak as he watched his feet slowly leave the ground. His stomach fluttered as he was lifted up into the air. He writhed and struggled, but against this invisible force he was powerless.

Naota swung his bass with a casual motion. It slapped into Jakun, and hurled the protesting monster into the air. His roar of outrage echoed as he faded from view and then vanished into the sky, thrown from the planets atmosphere.

Naota stood for several breaths, just staring up into the sky where his enemy had disappeared. Then he smiled to himself. A calm, satisfied smile.

"Now, Haruko, I..." he turned to address the damsel in distress, but was struck to find no sign of her. He spun on his feet searching for her, but found himself gazing at nothing but the bridge. His smile turned to a frown.

"Heeeey! A little help up here!" Mamimi's cry pierced the silence, bringing him back to reality. He looked up at where the girls still struggled with the ropes that bound them together. Naota smiled once again. He dropped his bass, and it hovered in the air. He leapt onto it with an acrobat's grace, and soared through the air effortlessly.

"Takun..." Eri whispered as she slowly faded away into a dead faint. He smiled as he held both girls across his shoulders.

"Relax. Its over now." He assured her. He smiled contently to himself as he glided into the horizon. Smiled for inside, he knew that in fact nothing was over, but just beginning.

Finally, another chapter up, true believers! But wait, its not over yet! We still have to find out what happened to Haruko, what was this miraculous change that came over Naota, and how will things turn out in the end? So many questions, only one chapter left! Be sure to stay tuned, true believers, for the conclusion or our story!


	18. Epilogue

The sunlight poured softly through the blinds to cast illumination onto the room. The shadows slowly vanished as the beams of sunlight chased away the evening darkness. They crept along the floor and slowly enlightened the figures laying, intertwined on the bed.

The alarm buzzed from the nightstand. Naota groaned and reached out. He slapped his hand down onto the clock, silencing the alarm. He pulled his arm back under the covers and then lay, looking at the wall, as he slowly blinked the sleep away. Next to him, the other figure in the bed stirred.

"Hmm..." Eri sighed as she rolled over. She draped her arm over him, and Naota became reacquainted of the events of the night before. He smiled softly and kissed her hand. "Too early..." Eri muttered in his ear.

"I know, I know." He said. He rolled over and touched his face to hers. Her eyes fluttered open, still glazed with sleep. He touched his lips to hers and brought her from dreams back into the real world with their kiss. She wrapped her arms around him and savored the taste of him until he pulled away. "I'm afraid I've got to get going."

"Hm" she sighed and nuzzled her head against his shoulder. "Can't it wait?"

"If I miss anymore class, I'll flunk." He chuckled in her ear. He inhaled the scent of her hair and then kissed her cheek. "I'll be free tonight, though." She smiled softly and whispered into his ear.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Naota smiled and kissed her once again. He hummed to himself as he dressed. He turned to say something more to her, but found she had already fallen back to sleep. He smiled and left silently, leaving Eri to rouse on her-own time.

"Hey, Naota!" Mamimi shouted. She ran up to him and then walked alongside him.

"You're looking pretty satisfied." He smirked. Mamimi blushed slightly.

"I just wanted to thank you again. Those pictures you helped me take where fantastic! No one can believe I was able to get those angles. They're all asking me if I know someone who owns a helicopter."

"And what did you tell them?" he said with a smile. She winked.

"I told them to mind their own business. A photographers secret is her trade." She drew her fingers across her lips and then flicked as if tossing away a key. Naota laughed. Now her face turned a little more serious, and she leaned in closer. "You haven't heard from her, have you?"

"Nope. Not since the fight." He shrugged casually, as if the subject Mamimi was now trying to dig up mattered nothing to him.

"Do you think she's still out there?"

"Whose to say?" He smiled at her. "Hey, you shouldn't be worrying about this." He grabbed her arm. "Come on, let's celebrate!" He started to yank her down the street.

"Stop, it hurts Takun!" Mamimi giggled as she tried to keep up.

Naota stepped off the stage amidst the applause, a satisfied smile playing across his lips. A couple members of the audience rose to their feet in their enthusiasm. Even he had to admit, his performance had been one of the best he could remember giving. He made his way over to an empty table, leaning his bass against the table leg. He sat down and opened one of his textbooks to brush up while he waited for someone to take his order.

"Excuse me sir, but a woman told me to give you this." A waitress said, setting down a Chai Tea in front of Naota. He gazed at it suspiciously.

"Back to this again, huh? All right, who is it this time?" He followed her pointing finger across the room, and was relieved to see none other than Kitsurubami giving him a friendly smile. As he walked over, she stood up, revealing her new uniform. She gave him a salute, her little girl grin never faltering. He looked her over up and down. "Taking in a new wardrobe?" he joked.

"I got promoted!" she squealed, leaping out of her professional stance, throwing her arms around his neck, nearly knocking him over. He regained his poise and returned the small embrace.

"Hey, that's great!" He congratulated as he sat down opposite her. He could not help but smile at her face. She was practically glowing. Her cinnamon cheeks flowed with a feint blush of excitement. Her eyes glittered with a light that they had not possessed since she had first started working for Amarao. Naota could not help but notice how this cheerful enthusiasm complimented her, making her look exceptionally pretty.

"And its all thanks to you," she continued, "Everyone at the IIB said trusting you to handle it yourself was a risk, but it paid off! I knew you had it in you."

"At least one of us did." He said, smiling. "Hey, what happened to your boss??"

"Oh, he's received a special transfer." She said with a broad smile. "To the psychiatric ward..." she muttered to herself, turning her head to the side.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing!" I'm going to be taking over all his duties in his absence."

"That's nice. I hope he's happy, wherever they send him."

"I'm sure he will be." Kitsurubami's mind conjured an image of Amarao sitting in a rubber room, his face set in a childish smile of morphine inspired bliss. She giggled to herself, and Naota cast her a skeptical look. "Anyhow, Medical Mechanica has not given us any trouble since you took care of things. There hasn't been any strange activity for a couple of weeks now. But, that could change at a moment's notice." She leaned in closer to him, and talked in a whisper. "We don't know what happened to her, Naota. She could be anywhere right now. She might drop in on you again."

"If she does, you'll be the first to know, of course." He said, finishing her statement for her. She offered him an understanding nod, and then leaned back into her seat.

"Anyway, I feel like celebrating! I've got a higher salary now, so anything you want on the menu, it's on me!" Naota smiled and rolled his eyes up, wondering how much more celebrating he could possibly do.

Ring, ring...

Naota snapped back to reality. He looked around, and found himself alone on a street corner, alone. He looked at the traffic on the street, and remembered he was waiting for the traffic light to change.

Ring, ring...

He looked around for the source of the sound, and his eyes fixed on a phone booth less than a block away. He cocked a curios eyebrow, and waited to see if it would stop.

Ring, ring...

He looked around again, and finally walked over to the glass box. He stepped into it, not bothering to pull the door closed, and picked the phone up slowly. He brought it up to his face, seeming to move in slow motion, and finally spoke into the speaker.

"Hello?"

"You looked very manly out there, Takun..." the familiar voice purred from the other end. Naota's eyes widened for a moment. He found himself slowly turning from side to side in the glass booth, anxiously glancing around the streets surrounding him, searching.

"Haruko...where are you?"

"Oh, I'm close enough Takun. Sorry for disappearing back on the bridge, but I had to get out of there till I can get my act back together. I mean, I need a new vespa, a new guitar..."

"Where are you?" he repeated. Haruko only laughed.

"Don't worry Takun, I won't be dropping in...yet. I wanna wait and see what you can do. You still have a lot to learn, Takun; I still have to teach you how to be a real man." Naota eased up slowly with each word, realizing he was not going to get any straight answers. It was still the same old Haruko. "I'll be keeping an eye on you Takun." There was a puckering sound of a kiss being blown, and then the line went dead. Naota stood, frozen for a moment, and then laughed lightly.

"Yeah...and I'll be right here waiting." He hung up the phone and stepped out of the booth, the world seeming no less bright and hopeful now. He smiled to himself, and suddenly had an idea.

He glanced down one way and then the other, making sure the coast was clear. He smirked, and tossed his bass into the air. It stopped just before it hit the ground, hovering in the air. He jumped up onto it, like a surfer mounting a wave, and took off into the blue sky. As he soared, he burst into laughter as he pondered the way the things sometimes turned out.

All around him, the possibilities were limitless.

Well true believers, that is the end our tale! I hope you have all enjoyed reading this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it! When I began, I seriously had no idea where this one was going to go, which is rare, because I usually have the endings of a story in mind when I start writing it. But this one was a challenge, and it was great to write. And it was even better to get all your friendly and positive remarks about it! I appreciate all-the accolade more than I can put to words, true believers! Keep reading, and keep-believing!


	19. Note from the author

Greetings again, true believers! (sorry to those of you who may be getting sick of my favorite catchphrase) I have to say, I am amazed at how many reviews this fic has received. It easily outdoes any of my previous works in its sheer size and effort. But, that is why I am writing this special not to you, wonderful people that you are.

From the last few reviews I have received, I detect a slight sense of dissatisfaction with the final chapter. And, I am going to freely admit, I am actually less than satisfied with it myself. To explain: when I started this story, I really did not know how I was going to cap it off. Eventually, I looked at it, and realized I was getting close to 20 chapters. Honestly, I hate it when I allow my fics to get too long, and at that point, I was starting to feel creatively exhausted for new things to do with the story. So I scrambled quickly for a clean way to end it, and still leave that sense of possibility for new adventures.

But, it seems that in the process, I failed to provide an ending that lives up to the rest of this story. And so, I have undertaken to try my hand at writing a sequel. And that is where I need your help!

As I said before, I am all out of ideas for how to continue this storyline, so I would like for all you believers out there to submit suggestions to me to help get my creative juices flowing once again!

I am going to focus on finishing several fics I currently have underway, with the occasional one shot in between to keep me refreshed. But, while I am doing that, I need ideas, ideas, and more ideas! Bring them on, true believers, and I shall do my best not to disappoint you!

Sincerely yours,

Djk1982


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